Dale E. Zimmer

Dale E. Zeimer, 91, of Green Bay, Wisconsin, and formerly of Dover and Dennison, Ohio, died at his home on Sunday, September 20, 2026.

Born on February 10, 1935 in Brilliant, Ohio, a small town along the Ohio River, Dale moved as a child with his older brother, Richard, and his parents, Herbert E. Zeimer and Glenna M. (Flowers) Zeimer, to Dennison. He grew up there and graduated from Dennison High School in 1953, where he competed on the football, track, and basketball teams. After high school, he worked as a sailor on the Great Lakes merchant marine, a fireman on the Pennsylvania Railroad, and a factory worker at the Timken Roller Bearing Company in New Philadelphia. In 1956 he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps alongside his close friends Ed Wagstaff and Basil Hillyer, spending the final year of his service with a helicopter squadron in Japan. Following his military service, Dale attended The Ohio State University, graduating cum laude and as a member of Phi Beta Kappa, an honor society he supported throughout his life. After a brief semester of graduate study, he chose a career with the Central Intelligence Agency over academia. He began his thirty-year CIA career in 1963, the same year he married Sandra Ripley of New Philadelphia. During his CIA career, Dale held several senior positions in the Operations Directorate at headquarters and in the field. He also served on the faculty of the National War College at Fort McNair in Washington, D.C., where he quickly earned a reputation as a highly regarded seminar leader and instructor. In retirement, Dale and Sandra returned to Ohio and spent several years traveling across the United States, drawn especially to national parks, wildlife preserves, and sanctuaries. With spotting scope and cameras in hand, he found deep joy in these quiet adventures. An enthusiastic fly fisherman and fly tier for many years, he cast his line in the waters of Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, California, Montana, British Columbia, and Alberta. He particularly cherished trips to the Catskills to fish the legendary Beaverkill and winters spent with Sandra on Florida’s Nature Coast.True to his Phi Beta Kappa roots, Dale remained a lifelong learner. He loved reading and collected a personal library of several thousand volumes spanning history, philosophy, literature, and science.

Dale is survived by his sons and daughters-in-law, Eric (Lisa) Zeimer, Michael (Patricia) Zeimer both of Green Bay, Wisconsin; grandsons, Matthew (Jordan) Zeimer and Justin (Eftal) Gezen; great grandchildren, Theodore Zeimer and Efe Gezen. He was preceded in death by his parents and by his best friend and brother, Richard, and his beloved wife, Sandra on January 18, 2021.

The family will be greeting friends on Friday, October 2nd from 5:00 pm to 7:00pm in the Toland-Herzig Funeral Home and Crematory at Dover. Graveside services will be held on Saturday, October 3rd starting at 10 am in the Dover Burial Park.