Fangmeyer grew up in Deshler as one of nine children. Her mother passed away when she was three. She went on to be the first in her family to graduate from the college at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and then UNL Law School. She has practiced law for 38 years and is presently a partner in the Kearney law firm of Fangmeyer, Aschwege, and Besse. Her public service includes a term as the President of the Nebraska State Bar Association in 2012-13. Her husband is Jim Wiest, who retired in 2011 as vice president for academic affairs at Hastings College. In 2016, she ran for the District 6 seat on the University of Nebraska Board of Regents, finishing second to Paul Kenney of Amherst in her bid for the open seat.