1932-2024
Dilma Teresa Allen, 92, daughter of Conrad and Emilia Galmeyer, was born March 4, 1932, in Willemstad, on the Caribbean island of Curacao Netherland Antilles. She passed away Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024, at the Lakeside Village, Panora.
She attended and graduated from the island Dutch public school in Curacao. She met her future husband, Courtney Powell Allen, while he was serving on the island with the United States Navy during the Korean War. They were married on March 16, 1953, in Willemstad. They first made their home in Des Moines, followed by Johnston, Urbandale and, finally, in 1982, they built a home on Lake Panorama. In 1988, they made the lake house their fulltime home.
Dilma worked for Delavan Manufacturing in Des Moines and retired from there. In 1982, she started working for her husband as he built a manufacturing plant in Panora for Sunny Time Foods. In 1989, he sold the company to Cargill, and she retired for the last time.
Dilma enjoyed being a mother and a classic housewife, and she was well known for her Lemon Meringue Pie. She also enjoyed baking cookies, playing bridge, and traveling with her husband, where he utilized her linguistic skills while traveling abroad. She spoke five different languages fluently.
She is survived by her sons, Courtney Allen, Jr. of Panora and Clifford (Joelle) Allen of Barnstable, Massachusetts; daughter, Cynthia Merritt of Cary, North Carolina; five granddaughters and seven great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband of 67 years, Courtney, Sr, four sisters, and three brothers.
Cremation has taken place, and memorial visitation will be held Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024, from 5-7 p.m. with a Vigil Service at 7 p.m. at the Twigg Funeral Home, Panora. Burial of her cremains will be at a later date in the Iowa Veterans Cemetery, near Van Meter.