Terence L. Appenfeldt

Terence “Terry” Appenfeldt passed away in the early hours of November 1, 2025, with family by his side.

Terry was born on May 14, 1947, to parents Clarence and Doris (Kurtz) Appenfeldt.  He was raised in Reeseville, Wisconsin, and in his teenage years helped in his father’s blacksmith shop where he learned the skill of welding which became his profession.  He met Kay Radtke at a wedding dance and they married two years later on July 20, 1968, at Salem Lutheran Church in Lowell, Wisconsin.  This began a partnership of love and “being together” over many adventures over their 57 years of marriage.  Both became competitive trapshooters shooting at local clubs in  Beaver Dam, Columbus, Pumpkin Center, and Lowell.  As registered American Trapshooting (ATA) members, they competed at clubs throughout the state and shot at the Team Shoot and State Shoot at Waukesha each year, and at the international ATA shoot in Vandalia, Ohio, twice where Terry “shot off” for top gun in his first competition there.  Together they won many team championships and Terry won many yearly Top Gun awards.  Terry and Kay went on the co-own Red Barn Sport and Liquor on Hwy 16 & 60 in Reeseville, Wisconsin, with Terry managing the day to day activities for 15 years meeting “tons of folks” who became regular customers.  After closing down the business, Terry began volunteerism and community service.  Terry was an expert woodcrafter designing and building many projects for individuals from his business An Apple Wood.  Terry became the Woodshop Coordinator at the Beaver Dam Senior Center in 2007 serving in that capacity for 16 years.  He and his woodshop guys proudly built custom projects for individuals, nonprofits, and organizations such as display cabinets for the Beaver Dam Police Department, a display cabinet for Mayor Tom Kennedy, and numerous handcrafted wooden items for the Wings Over Wisconsin and Beaver Dam Lake Improvement banquets.  They were especially proud to help out senior citizens with repairs and small projects they needed done.  “No project was too tough for them to put their heads together to create and build.”  They were especially proud to design and build a new Christmas car each year to hand out to the children on the Beaver Dam Holiday Parade route.  Terry served on the Executive Boards of Wings Over Wisconsin, Ducks Unlimited, the Exchange Club, and the Steering Committee for the Beaver Dam Senior Center.  He served on the Building Committee that explored venues and finally selected the site for the new Senior Center now called the Watermark.  In their spare time, Terry and Kay traveled the United States in their RV with cherished companions, Ben and Star, a golden retriever and black lab.  Terry found time to duck hunt and deer hunt each season.  Terry volunteered at the Dodge County Fair at fair time.  Terry presented the idea and he started the Cart transportation service transporting fairgoers from the parking lot to the main fairgrounds.  Terry lived a full, rich life giving of himself for the benefit of others, serving his community, and sharing his talent.

Terry is survived by his wife, Kay Appenfeldt, siblings, Gerald (Pam Pearsall) Appenfeldt, Michael (Ginny) Appenfeldt, Debra (Ray) Schrab, brother-in-law Randall Radtke, goddaughter, Jazmyn Lueck, woodworking buddies, Wayne, Steve, Fred, Ken, Bill, and Joel, nieces and nephews, other relatives and friends.  He was preceded in death by his parents, a sister Sherry Arndt, a brother, Lynn Appenfeldt, and woodworking buddies, Orville, Lewis, Bob, Tom, Bert, Rich, Lenny, and Harvey.

The visitation for Terry will be at First Ev. Lutheran Church in Beaver Dam on Friday, November 7, 2025 from 10:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. The funeral service will follow at the church on Friday at 11:00 a.m. with Rev. Jim Wendt officiating. Burial will be at Oakwood Cemetery in Beaver Dam.