It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Michael Dean “Mike” Dehmer of Smithville, TX. He was called home to Our Heavenly Father on August 26, 2026, at the age of 80 in Austin, Texas, two days before his 81st birthday.

Born in Columbus, Texas on August 28, 1945, to Louis and Frances Dehmer, he was the youngest of seven children. Mike graduated Colombus High School and attended Wharton County Jr. College prior to enlisting in the U.S. Navy and being deployed to Vietnam where he fought valiantly as a corpsman with the Marines.

In 1969, after being honorably discharged from the Navy, he was stationed at Camp Pendleton working as a nurse to tend the wounded. In September of that year, Mike attended an enlisted men’s club dance where he met his future wife, Karin. She stepped outside for a breath of fresh air, and he followed her to ask for a dance. On Christmas Eve, just three months later, he proposed.


Mike’s first job after the military was at ARC Electric in San Diego, California, where he discovered a talent in that field and met his longtime mentor and friend, Paul Bradford. After the birth of their two daughters, Mike and Karin moved to Austin to be closer to his parents, affectionately known as Ninie and Papa. After many successful years in the electrical industry, he and his partners ventured out to create Hill Country Electric Supply, something he poured many years of life into and was very proud of.

In 2005 Mike and Karin built their home in Smithville, Texas. They enjoyed an idyllic retirement where neighbors and fellow parishioners of the First United Methodist Church became permanent fixtures in their lives. Their home on Gresham Street was filled with grandchildren, neighborhood kids, friends, family, and pets. A hot meal was always cooking, cakes always baking in the ovens, as Mike held dear the four “F’s”: Family, Friends, Football, Food.

An avid gardener, foodie, and University of Texas sports fan, he could be found watching or attending a game, puttering around his beautiful yard, or making notes in his many recipe books. There isn’t anything Mike wouldn’t do for the people he loved. If you needed him, he was there — whether buying cookies for a school fundraiser, supporting The Scouts, ushering Sunday services, gardening the church grounds, or helping with Methodist Men— Mike was a devout and faithful friend. Those closest to him were well aware of his keen sense of humor and often found themselves on the receiving end of some hilariously wicked pranks. Never one to shy away from affection, a warm hug and a smile were always offered. A man of great integrity and warmth, he will be painfully missed.

He was an absolute model of a man, who was held in the highest regard, loved and adored by all, he; was greeted in Heaven by his mother and father, Frances and Louis Dehmer, and four of his siblings : Louis “Buddy” Dehmer, Mary Wilson, Adelle Pasqua, Phillip Dehmer, and brothers-in-law Edward Roe and Lonnie Mrazek. And Dolly Parton!

He is lovingly survived by his wife of 56 years, Karin Roe Dehmer, and their daughters, Michelle Corrine and Marlies Renee Dehmer. His grandchildren were the twinkle in his eye: his one and only, dearly treasured grandson, Michael Austin Debrock, and three beautiful, cherished granddaughters, Isis Nilayna and Mercedes Francesca Debrock, and Lillie June McWhorter. Mike leaves behind two of his four doting sisters that God was kind enough to bless him with: Joanne Mrazek and Becky Marsalia. As if his heart wasn’t full enough, he parted with many brothers and sisters-in law, nieces, nephews, and countless dear friends. It is no secret that he is frequently referred to as many of the cousin’s favorite uncle. Many of his friends referred to him as a brother. Only someone as memorable as Mike could claim titles he wasn’t bestowed with at birth, but was granted upon the merit of his character.

Matthew 5:4
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”

Memorial services will be held Saturday, September 19, 2026 at First United Methodist Church at 10am in Smithville, Texas. Burial will follow at Winchester Cemetery, concluding with lunch and a celebration of life at Zilss Hall.

The family kindly requests that memorial donations be made in Mike's memory to the Wounded Warriers Project.