Dawn Meredith Knitter, nee Lepper 57, beloved wife of Michael Knitter and mother of Victoria Cae Knitter (partner, John Blair (JB) Lathers) and Claudia Ingrid Knitter (partner, Matthew Riebe) left the world she made better every day with her love as the result of an accidental fall at her home August 26, 2020 in Auburn, California. She is survived by her mother, Barbara Waltenberry (Richard); sister Colleen Bergman (Doug), niece Gracie Bergman; brother Andy Zipperer (Tammy), nieces Maggie and Hannah; stepfather Arley Hussin, uncle Jerry Lepper (Colleen), cousins Todd (Tammy) and Matthew (Maria) Lepper and best friend Kristy Goldberg-Novotney and dear friend Krystle Arcamo Knezevich (Nick). She is also survived by sisters-in-law: Kathy Perotti (Ron), Jeanne Luprecht, Marji Meister, Elaine Roesler (Randy), and Carrie Roberts. Brothers-in-law: Thom Knitter (Susan Turco) and Dave Knitter (Vickie).
Every person that met Dawn instantly had a bond and loved her. Dawn was truly a wonderful person and provided pure goodness in this world and was “one in a million”. Dawn was creative and always could see the beauty in the world which led her to her love of photography and her business Victoria-Claude Photography from 1993-2020. Dawn captured children and adults in black and white portraits that perfectly captured the essence and perfect personality of the person who was in front of her. Dawn waited for the perfect light in her work as she traveled the world. She captured the pure beauty in the world whether it was raw, imperfect, or part of what god created in the world at that moment. She saw the world with a unique creative and loving eye. Dawn was confirmed and became a Catholic in 1999 and had her marriage blessed in the church with her husband Mike. While at St. Roberts parish she served as St Robert’s Home & School President for two terms. As she said, “I volunteered for anything and everything during my ten years as a St. Robert’s School parent”. When her dear step-sister-in-law was fighting cancer, Dawn was so impressed by the radiation technologists treating Shannon, that she went back to school at Columbia-St. Mary’s to become a radiologic technician. She cared for many people both as a loving neighbor and in-home healthcare as she supported people and held their hand with their final breaths in this world.
Dawn was a dog lover and her family had many German shepherds over the years. Her present German shepherd, Maya, misses her terribly. Rosie the corgi is still looking for food she dropped on the floor as she loved to bake, cook and knit. She was a Knitter and knitted blankets for new babies and for people she served at the end of their life.
Dawn was an excellent cook and made every piece of food with love. She truly captured the love of the person and made the dinner, appetizer or dessert that was meant for the meal, person or gathering. She knew in her heart and put her love in everything meal she made. Dawn was always 110% ready to help you through a tough time, whether it was for her mom who was hospitalized for a month, Dawn put her life on hold and stayed with her. Dawn loved her daughters so very much and supported them in their battles with their illnesses, Dawn was always there for Victoria and Claudia and would spend months at a time out of town by their side and holding their hand and kissing their foreheads in the midst of chaos and pain. In her last two weeks of life she flew back to support her sister Colleen for a tragic death and made all the food for Mike’s “work wife” Maria supporting her after Maria’s sister died of cancer.
She was the most exceptionally loving and caring person, Dawn was the glue that held the family together. She will be missed beyond measure.
A funeral mass will be held at St. Robert’s Parish, 2214 E. Capitol Drive, Milwaukee, WI 53211, Saturday, Sept. 5th at 12:30 p.m.
In lieu of flowers donations can be made to The Wisconsin Humane Society @ WIhumane.org
