Dennis Ray Williams

Dennis “Denny” Ray Williams, 72, of Newton died on Monday, November 26, at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City.  A memorial service will be held at 10:30 a.m., Friday, November 30, at the First Baptist Church in Newton. The family will greet friends after the service with a lunch at the church.  Memorials to the First Baptist Church or the Newton Booster Club may be left at the church or at the Wallace Family Funeral Home and Crematory.

Denny, the son of Ray and Katherine (Vander Pol) McGee, was born on September 16, 1946 in Grinnell.  He grew up on a farm north of Lynnville and attended Grinnell schools until the age of 10 when his family moved to Newton. Denny was a 1964 graduate of Newton High School and was a member of the 1963 and 1964 State Championship basketball teams. In 1992, Denny married his life-long partner Nancy.  Denny worked as an Industrial Engineer and later retired from the Maytag Company. After his retirement he trucked for his brother for a few years, prior to working for and becoming a part of the Vernon Family. Denny was a member of the First Baptist Church and the Emerson Hough Chapter of the Izaak Walton League. He enjoyed outdoor sports, duck hunting, deer hunting, and fishing. 

Those left to honor Denny’s memory are his wife, Nancy Williams of Newton; children, Bob (Denise) Williams of Newton, Eric Williams of Newton, Todd DeSchmidt of Hudson, Shelley Slaughter of Des Moines, and Don (Regina) Vestal of Des Moines; grandchildren, Bailey, Baker, Maggie, Rachael, Erika, C. Roland, Monica, Kendra, Tayler, and Madison; six great-grandchildren; his brothers, Ron Williams (Jenice Van Rees) of Lynnville and Gary (Sonja) Williams of Grundy Center; and his five nieces and nephews.  He was preceded in death by his parents.

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