Cecil Keith Cumpton

Cecil Keith Cumpton, 85, of Newton died on Saturday, July 14, 2018, at Iowa Methodist Medical Center in Des Moines.  A funeral service will be held at 10:30 a.m., Wednesday, July 18, at the First Baptist Church.  The family will greet friends immediately following the service with a lunch at the church.  Memorials to the First Baptist Church or to RSVP – Transportation Program may be left at the church the day of the service or the Wallace Family Funeral Home and Crematory.

Cecil, the son of Cecil C. and Erna (Scherger) Cumpton, was born on December 11, 1932 on a farm near Fremont, Iowa.  He attended country school into the 5thgrade and then graduated from Tracy High School in 1951.  Cecil received his BS in Mechanical Engineering from Iowa State University in 1961.  After graduation he moved to California where he took several graduate courses at UCLA in the 60’s and 70’s and later received his certificate from the UCLA Graduate School of Management.  In California, Cecil worked at Douglas Aircraft Co. and then at Hughes Aircraft Co in Los Angeles for 34 years, retiring in 1996.  On November 20, 1993, Cecil was united in marriage with Diana Johnson Rader.  After Cecil’s retirement, he purchased the family farm near New Sharon and ran it for the next nine years. When Diana retired in 2004, they sold the farm and enjoyed traveling.  For the last five winters, Cecil and Diana have been wintering in Arizona.  Cecil served as an RV Park Ranger at the park that they stayed in.  Cecil was a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the Hughes Management Club, and the First Baptist Church in Newton.  He also was active in RSVP and Rotary, where he was a Paul Harris Fellow.    Cecil enjoyed automotive restoration and had restored a Thunderbird with his son, Scott. He also collected antique tractors, enjoyed snow skiing, and in earlier years had been a talented roller skater and bowler.  

Cecil is survived by his wife, Diana of Newton; children, Scott Cumpton (Tiffany Huff) of Knoxville; step-children, Karla Lanser of Newton and Ryan Rader of Cedar Rapids; grandchildren, Ashley Cumpton, Kourtnie Nisius, Blake Nisius, Derek Lanser, Annika Rader, Brendan Rader, and Stella Rader; his sister, Arlene (Verne) Byers of Newton; sister-in-law, Bette Cumpton of Florida; brother-in-law, Larry Benge of Cedar Rapids; and his many nieces and nephews.  He was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, James Cumpton and Warren (Bernice) Cumpton; and sisters, Louise (Emil) Ruhr and Carolyn Benge.

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