Stephen Everett Dille (March 16, 1945 – March 25, 2020) was a

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

politician and a member of the Minnesota Senate representing District 18, which includes portions of Carver, McLeod, Meeker, Stearns and

Wright Wright is an occupational surname originating in England. The term 'Wright' comes from the circa 700 AD Old English word 'wryhta' or 'wyrhta', meaning worker or shaper of wood. Later it became any occupational worker (for example, a shipwright is ...

counties just west of the

Twin Cities Twin cities are a special case of two neighboring cities or urban centres that grow into a single conurbation – or narrowly separated urban areas – over time. There are no formal criteria, but twin cities are generally comparable in statu ...

metropolitan area.

Background

Dille was born in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, Minnesota in 1945. He graduated from Litchfield High School in 1963, and later obtained a B.S. from the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

and, in 1969, a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Degree from the

's College of Veterinary Medicine. He was a civilian veterinary advisory in

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

for three and a half years during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

. Dille was an experienced rodeo cowboy, and was state champion calf roper, steer wrestler, and bull rider. In high school he won the Minnesota All Around Cowboy title twice and placed fourth in the nation in steer wrestling. Dille lived in

Dassel, Minnesota Dassel is a city in Meeker County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 1,469 at the 2010 census. History Dassel was platted in 1869, and named for Bernard Dassel, a railroad official. A post office has been in operation at Dassel si ...

with his wife Pamela, who works as a media specialist at Dassel Elementary. They have four children and nine grandchildren. Dille wrote books about the family history and an autobiography. Dille also wrote an article about the value of cattle in the Minnesota economy. Dille died on March 25, 2020, in Dassel, Minnesota.

Service in the Minnesota House and Senate

Dille served as a township supervisor in Dassel from 1977 to 1984, and as a Meeker County commissioner from 1985 to 1987. He was elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives from the old District 21A in 1986 and was re-elected in 1988 and 1990. In 1992, Dille was elected to the Minnesota Senate from the old District 20, which later became the current District 18 after the 2002

redistricting Redistribution (re-districting in the United States and in the Philippines) is the process by which electoral districts are added, removed, or otherwise changed. Redistribution is a form of boundary delimitation that changes electoral dist ...

. He was re-elected in 1996, 2000, 2002 and 2006. Dille was a member of the senate's Agriculture & Veterans, Capital Investment, Environment & Natural Resources, and Finance committees. He also served on the Finance subcommittees for the Agriculture and Veterans Budget and Policy Division, for the Environment, Energy and Natural Resources Budget Division, and for the Environment, Energy and Natural Resources Budget Division-Energy Subdivision. On November 17, 2009, Dille announced that he would not seek election to a sixth term in the Senate.

Electoral history

*2006 Race for Minnesota Senate – District 18 **Steve Dille (R) 61.94% (19654 votes) **Hal Kimball (DFL), 37.99% (12054 votes) **Write-in, 0.08% (24 votes) *2002 Race for Minnesota Senate – District 18 **Steve Dille (R) 68.36% (21368 votes) **Sheila D. Sudbeck (DFL), 28.33% (8855 votes) **Paul Murray (Constitution) 3.22%(1006 votes) **Write-in, 0.10% (31 votes) *2000 Race for Minnesota Senate – District 20 **Steve Dille (R) 65.14% (21071 votes) **Jeffrey R. Krueger (DFL), 34.86% (11274 votes)

References

Bibliography

*Dille, Stephen Everett and Dille, Bonnie Anderson. Self-Made in America: A Biography of Alfred Anderson: Business Entrepreneur, Civic Leader, and Family Patriarch. North Star Press of St. Cloud, Inc. Pamela and Stephen Dille, 2011 *Dille, Steve. Livestock, Good for the Economy and Good for the Environment: Minnesota Needs More Livestock: a Report. Dassel, MN: S. Dille, 2005.

External links

Senator Dille Web PageMinnesota Public Radio Votetracker: Senator Steve DilleSteve Dille Campaign Web Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dille, Steve 1945 births 2020 deaths People from Meeker County, Minnesota American veterinarians County commissioners in Minnesota Republican Party members of the Minnesota House of Representatives Republican Party Minnesota state senators Politicians from Minneapolis University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine alumni Writers from Minnesota 21st-century American legislators 21st-century Minnesota politicians