Wayne Russell Wilcox

WAYNE RUSSELL WILCOX

Tama

Wayne Russell Wilcox, 94, of Tama and the Haven community, passed away on Friday, Sept. 13, 2019, at Brooklyn Community Estate in Brooklyn, Iowa. Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m. Monday, Sept. 16, at Kruse-Phillips Funeral Home in Tama with Pastor Charles Johnson officiating. Interment will follow at the Haven Cemetery in rural Tama. Visitation will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 15, at Kruse-Phillips Funeral Home.

Wayne was born on Oct. 16, 1924, in Haven, Iowa, the son of Fay E. and Beulah (Rich) Wilcox and lived 93 of his 95 years on the same hilltop.

He attended Richland No. 5 country school, but never stopped learning or teaching.

On Oct. 20, 1945, he was united in marriage to Arlene Smith at the Haven Community Church. Wayne farmed, raised livestock and owned-operated Wilcox Repair and Equipment since he was 15 years old. Wayne was a member of the Haven Community Church, where he collected the offering since he was 10 years old. He was a board member of TIP Rural Electric Cooperative from 1967 to 2017 and was present for the first switch to be turned on. He also was on the Central Iowa Power Coop Board and a longtime member on the Board of Directors of the Chelsea Savings Bank. Wayne was a founding member of the Poweshiek Water Association and remained on the PWA Board of Directors since 1977. Wayne enjoyed square dancing, golf, fishing and anything that had a steering wheel. He was known for the ability to wiggle his ears and make people, especially children, laugh.

Survivors include his wife of 73 years, Arlene of Tama; three children, Al (Nancy) Wilcox of Valrico, Fla., Craig (Karen) Wilcox of Brooklyn and Mary Kay (Rick) Borts of Altoona; seven grandchildren, Scott (Tami) Wilcox, Melissa (Corbin) Winter, Erin (Jess) Billmeyer, Lisa (Andrew Blikken) Wilcox, Adam Borts, Candice (Wayne) Fedeler and Brandon (Allison) Borts; and 15 great-grandchildren.

Preceding him in death were his parents; a stepmother, Lucille Parks; and one brother, Keith Wilcox.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the Haven Community Church.