On Dec. 14th, 2024, David “Dave” Poisl, 84 of Paris, WI departed his earthly life, surrounded by his girls, Linda, Nancy, and Jill who will miss him immensely.
Born on April 17, 1940, the fifth of William and Della (Williams) Poisl’s seven children. He enjoyed a classic youth working and playing hard on the family dairy farm. Dave enjoyed sports, most notably, football. At Central High School, he became captain of the football team, class vice president, homecoming king, and prom king before graduating. At U.W. Whitewater he continued to play football while enjoying general tomfoolery with his fraternity, Sigma Tau Gamma.
Dave met his destiny at a cousin’s wedding on Dec. 26th, 1959. His eyes were drawn to an attractive young woman surrounded by four young men. The young woman was Linda Neu, and she had certainly noticed him too. Alas, she thought he must be married because he was carrying a little boy. Undeterred by Linda’s entourage, Dave convinced Linda’s Great Aunt Ag to introduce him. Luckily, the men at the table turned out to be Linda’s cousins and the little boy in Dave’s arms was the ring bearer at the wedding! They danced several dances even though Linda’s cousins tried to protect her from Dave’s attention. Cousin Vern warned her, “One date with him (Dave) would be enough” and cousin Paul even tried to pick a fight with Dave. But Linda had already given her phone number which Dave remembered for the rest of his life. Their romance blossomed while they both attended U.W. Whitewater.
Dave and Linda married on a beautiful summer day, June 23rd, 1962. At the church on the morning of the wedding, Linda asked Vern why he warned her away from Dave. Vern casually shrugged, “So I misjudged the guy.” Misjudged indeed as they enjoyed more than 62 years of marriage full of love and adventure. One such adventure occurred when trying to leave for the much-anticipated wedding night. To their shock, their car had no wheels! The newlyweds did not find the antics of best man brother Bill and groomsman, Stogie funny. But nothing could stop the two lovers!
Another adventure in their young marriage was a month-long motorcycle expedition out West. This trip would be the start of a life-long love affair with Yellowstone National Park.
In 1963, after graduating from U.W. Whitewater and training in the National Guard, Dave became a science teacher for Racine Unified School District where he taught for 36 years (6 at Jerstad Jr. High and 30 at Case High School). Dave was never afraid to stand up for what he believed in. He proved this when he was jailed for teachers’ rights twice in 1977 while on strike with the teachers union.
In 1966, Dave and Linda began their adventures in parenthood, leading to three children, Nancy (John) Lindsley, Jill (Thomas) Ott, and Daniel (Tracie Poisl-Young). Happily, the family grew to include eleven grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. The grandkids were happy students of “Bumpa”, learning about gardening, stars, and constellations. After helping in the garden picking corn or shucking peas, the reward was rollicking wagon rides, pulled by Bumpa on the riding lawn mower. Most importantly, he taught them to be compassionate, generous, and fair.
Besides teaching and being “Dad”, Dave wasn’t done with football yet. He played for the Racine Raiders for 8 years, became defensive captain in 1969, and was inducted into the Racine Raiders Hall of Fame in 2005.
Dave, a man of Faith, was very active in the Knights of Columbus where he held positions as the Grand Knight and District Deputy. He was also in the St. John the Baptist Catholic Church choir and on the parish council (1994-1998).
Once retired, Dave and Linda spent fifteen adventure-filled summers working at Yellowstone National Park. Their favorite job was working at the Old Faithful General Store where Dave taught all the young folk how to scoop the best ice cream cones (no wimpy scoops on his watch). There they made many friends from all over the world. Dave loved telling people about the best geysers and waterfalls to see and the secret places most visitors missed. Sometimes he’d also throw in a mini earth science lesson on the park’s geothermal wonders. Many times, out on the trails a shout “Hey Poisl!” would ring out, a friendly greeting from an old acquaintance. A passerby flashed the right-hand/left-hand motor rule sign that he had taught his physics students as a secret nod of recognition many years ago. It felt like wherever he went in life, people knew him.
Dave and Linda were snowbirds and wintered in Mesa AZ with their lasting friends (“the Gang”) from Wisconsin. With old and new friends, there was endless dancing, partying, and general merry-making. Dave’s oldest daughter commented that the resort was like Neverland with Dave and Linda as Peter Pan and Wendy — kids forever!
Dave was quick with a welcoming smile and infectious laugh. He always looked for ways to help others and made sure everyone felt welcome. He was incredibly strong in the face of illness and would want everyone to know he “never felt bad”.
Hopefully, we haven’t lost you in this long telling of Dave’s life, but we feel it is a tale worth telling. He was our hero, our champion and his love, great sense of humor and strength will continue to inspire us all. Dave was the Best Dad Ever. He even has a coffee mug to prove it!
David was preceded in death by his parents William and Della (Williams), siblings Donald, Shirley (Karczewski), May Lou, William Jr. and son, Daniel. He is survived by wife, Linda (Neu), brothers Dennis and Patrick, daughter Nancy (John Lindsley) and grandchildren, Torren, Tarek, and Sierra and great-grandchild Danielle, daughter Jill (Thomas Ott) grandchildren Shannon, Thomas Jr., Devan, Rhyley, and Delaney, and great-grandchildren Abigail and Alexander, daughter in law Tracie Poisl Young (Jason) and grandchildren Madison, Bryanna and Brayden.
A visitation for David will take place at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church (1501 172nd Ave Paris, WI) on Friday January 17th, 2025, at 11:00 A.M. A Memorial Mass will take place at church at 12.
