Byse, Robert John

Robert John Byse, 75, of Marion, died Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2011, in his home. Services will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, Oct. 7, at Goettsch Funeral Home in Anamosa. Pastor Grant Hagen will officiate at the service. Friends may call beginning at 9 a.m. at the funeral home. Interment will be at Riverside Cemetery in Anamosa.

Surviving are three children, Katherine (Randy) Williams of Mount Airy, Md., John Byse of Marion and Amy (Paul) Rullkoetter of Lyons, Colo.; two grandchildren, Caroline and Daniel Robertson of Mount Airy, Md.; two sisters, Joanne (Jim) Kimber of Marion and Diane Smith of Council Bluffs; and two brothers, Chuck Byse of Marion and Bill Byse of Cedar Rapids.

He was preceded in death by his parents and his wife, Elizabeth (2009).

Robert John Byse was born Feb. 22, 1936, in Marion, Iowa, the son of John and Edith (McGowan) Byse. Robert was a 1954 graduate of Marion High School and a 1960 graduate of Iowa State University. He attended Purdue University for his graduate studies. On June 12, 1960, Robert and Elizabeth Losenicky were united in marriage and the couple moved to their new home in Kokomo, Ind. Robert worked for more than 36 years as an electrical engineer for General Motors.

Robert was a member of the Izaak Walton League and New Horizons Band. He was a competitive rifle marksman and was fond of World War II history. He enjoyed his time living abroad in Singapore and Germany. He loved anything and everything about trains, especially steam engines.

He never outgrew his taste for pranks, and actually climbed the WMT tower on Halloween night in 1953 to hang a dummy from the platform.

Thoughts, memories, condolences may be left at .

Published Oct. 6, 2011, in The Gazette