Dallas F. Dauterman

Dallas F. Dauterman 63, of Risingsun, Ohio passed away peacefully on December 3, 2020 at his residence. Dallas was born on March 18, 1957 to the late Dallas P. and Emily A. (Forristell) Dauterman.

Dallas loved and respected Nature above all else. He was not a religious man, but he claimed that, if there was a God, He was there in the trees, the mountains and the rivers. His love of nature was innate. As a very young child, he often returned home with injured animals and reptiles he had found on his excursions into the woods. He would bring them home, nurse them back to health and, when they had recovered their strength, he would release them back into nature. He is fondly remembered for being an extraordinary river guide, teaching all who wanted to know the different plants and animals to be found along the banks. Often, during a particularly peaceful leg of a canoe or kayak trip, he would pull out the flute he had made out of cedar and regale his travel companions with soothing music that seemed to fit perfectly in the moment.

Dallas was an incurable romantic. In his youth, he was drawn to the poetry of Byron, Wordsworth, Shelley, Keats and Whitman. He pored over their poems and even crafted his own in their style as an impressionable adolescent. His romantic nature was also reflected in his love of the old swashbuckler movies and his desire to fight for noble causes. This led him to take up that of the Native Americans — to the point that he was adopted as a son of the Mohawk tribe and given the name River Hawk.

Dallas was also regarded by all who knew him as an extraordinarily generous person. He was always willing to sacrifice his own economy and comfort if he could help someone else. There is a famous account of St. Martin of Tours in which the saint came upon a scantily clad beggar in the midst of winter and, without hesitation, drew his sword and cut his own cape in half to give half to the beggar. Dallas would have given the beggar his entire cape and risked catching pneumonia.

Dallas will be sorely missed by all who knew him.

Dallas is survived by his brothers, Thomas and David Dauterman; and sisters, Joan Fraser and Sharon Rieff-Sting. He was preceded in death by a brother, John Dauterman; and a sister, Denise Dauterman.

A celebration of life will be held in the spring of 2021. Hufford Family Funeral Home, 1500 Manor Hill Rd., Findlay (419-422-1500) has been entrusted with the arrangements.

 

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Dallas F. Dauterman, please visit our floral store.