Wayne Brown

Wayne Eldon Brown, age 89, passed away on Saturday, August 22, 2020 at his home in Bayard, Iowa.

Funeral services will be held at 10:30 A.M. on Tuesday, August 25, 2020 at the United Methodist Church in Bayard with Rev. Karen Patrick officiating.  Organist for the service will be Martha Wolf.  Casket bearers will be Devi Ray, Damion Nepper, Grant Seuferer, Kyleigh Seuferer, Bryant Seuferer, Brooke Seuferer, Gavin McGivney, Mike Ray, and Landon Ray.   Burial will be in the Scranton Township Cemetery with military honors by the Bayard American Legion and the Iowa National Guard.

Friends may call at the Dahn and Woodhouse Funeral Home in Coon Rapids from 5 – 7 P.M. on Monday evening.  The casket will be moved to the church at 9:30 A.M. on Tuesday where visitation will resume until 10:15 A.M.  Funeral arrangements are under the direction of the Dahn and Woodhouse Funeral Home in Coon Rapids and online condolences may be left for the family at www.dahnandwoodhouse.com

Those in attendance at Wayne’s services are asked to abide by Covid–19 social distancing guidelines and face coverings are strongly recommended.

Born on July 16, 1931, in Carroll, Iowa, he was the son of John Keith and Odessa (Hoyt) Brown.  Wayne grew up on the farm in the Scranton area and attended Scranton Consolidated Schools through 2nd grade and moved to the Bayard area where he graduated in 1949 from the Bayard Community School.  Wayne attended Iowa State University where he completed the operational farming short course.  On January 20, 1952, he joined Phyllis Lorraine Jacobson in marriage in the Lutheran Church in Scranton, Iowa. In March of 1952 he was drafted into the United States Army where he served during the Korean Conflict in Germany as a decoding specialist in the Signal Corps.  Upon his honorable discharge, the Browns moved to a farm south of Scranton.  Two years later they relocated three miles north of Bayard where he farmed with his father and continued farming 59 years.  In addition to his farming operation, he was heavily involved in sales of DeKalb seed corn and Schechinger seed beans.  He served on many boards including Bayard Community Schools, Bayard Coop, Lions Club, American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Greene County Mutual Insurance, Willow Township, and the Greene County Zoning Board.  He was an active member of the Bayard United Methodist Church.  He enjoyed softball, bowling, golfing, and his fishing trips to Minnesota with many dear friends.  He enjoyed countless hours watching his children and grandchildren play in many sports, musical events, and 4-H activities.  Upon retirement, he chose to move to the town of Bayard where he could continue to enjoy friends and family.  Wayne cherished his daily trips to Sparky’s to have coffee with the guys.  He enjoyed following the Iowa State Cyclones and the Chicago Cubs as well as reading biographies and western novels.

Wayne is survived by his wife of 68 years, Phyllis (Jacobson) Brown, of Bayard, Iowa; two sons, Steve Brown of Ida Grove, and Jerry Brown (Kristie) of Algona, Iowa; and two daughters, Linda Seuferer (Rande) of Milo, Iowa, and Lori Brown McGivney of Bayard, Iowa; six grandchildren: Devi Ray (Mike) and Damion Nepper (Robyn Ritchey), Grant Seuferer (Kyleigh), Bryant Seuferer, and Brooke Seuferer (Trent Verwers) , and Gavin McGivney; five great-grandchildren:  Colby Nepper and Gage Nepper, and Landon Ray, Chesney Nepper, and Valerie Verwers; and two great-great-grandchildren Jaxdan and Taytum Pierson; two sisters, Elaine Seaman (Robert) of Carroll, Iowa, and Lois Taylor (Merlin) of Cedar Falls, Iowa, a brother-in-law John “Jack” Bass of Fontanelle, Iowa, and sister-in-law, Donna Loof (Roger), Urbandale, Iowa.

Wayne was preceded in death by his parents, John Keith, and Odessa and his father-in-law and mother-in-law, Walter and Esther Jacobson, his sister Bernice Bass, sister-in-law Velma Jean Jacobson Dagit, a brother-in-law Larry Dagit, and a daughter-in-law Dorothy Nepper Brown.