Dean Fix, son of William Thomas & Mabel Inez (Septer) Fix, was born March 30, 1932 in Logan, Kansas and passed away December 26, 2011 at The Cedars nursing facility in McPherson, Kansas at the age of 79.

Dean finished grade school in Speed, Kansas and then attended high school in Phillipsburg for 1-1/2 years. From a young age he was passionate about music, learning to play the guitar, piano and steel guitar. At age 14 he began playing for dances with his Dad at the Speed Dance Hall.

When he was 19, he started taking on plumbing jobs. Dean worked at this vocation for six years. On May 28, 1955, he married Loretta Beach in Phillipsburg, Kansas. The couple would later be blessed with the birth of two daughters, Teal and Taffy.

In February, 1958, Dean began managing the Quality Petroleum Company service station in Phillipsburg, which he ran for 10 years. In 1968 he was hired as manager of the new APCO station until 1972, when the family moved to Lake Havasu City, Arizona.

It didn't take long for Dean to realize that Arizona was not where he wanted to be, so the family returned to Phillipsburg where he took a job as custodian at the Phillipsburg High School. During this time, Dean took classes through Colby Community College at the high school in Phillipsburg in order to earn his GED, which he proudly accomplished in 1975. Also during the decade of the 70's, Dean joined a 4-piece band called the "Roadrunners". He thoroughly enjoyed the eight years that he performed and traveled with the band.

In 1995, after 23 years of service, Dean finally retired as custodian at the high school. In 2009, he & Loretta moved into The Cedars Retirement Community in McPherson, Kansas.

In addition to music, Dean's hobbies included horseback riding and tinkering on old cars. He was also interested in and fascinated by astronomy. He enjoyed mentoring young people, teaching guitar and sharing his music, and he also loved spending time with his family and friends.

Dean was preceded in death by his parents; his granddaughter, Tish Budig; a brother, Russell Fix; a sister, Thelma Gaffney; and his nephew, Duane Fix.

He is survived by his wife, Loretta, of McPherson; daughters Teal Yates & husband, Bob, of Phillipsburg, KS and Taffy Bushnell & husband, William, of McPherson; two grandchildren, Robert Yates III and Tori Yates; and his sister-in-law, Muriel Fix.

Funeral services will be held Thursday, Dec. 29 at 2:00 p.m. in the Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel with Patrick Allen officiating. Burial will follow in the Fairview Cemetery, Phillipsburg.

Visitation will be from 12:00 to 9:00 Wed & from 9:00 to service time Thursday at the funeral home.

Memorial contributions may be made to the First Christian Church