Leonard R Deeter

Leonard R. Deeter, 93, of rural Mingo died on Wednesday, February 28, 2018, at his home.  A funeral service will be held at 10:30 a.m., Saturday, March 10, at the Ira United Church.  The family will greet friends from 5-7 p.m., Friday, March 9, at the Wallace Family Funeral Home and Crematory.  Memorials to the Ira United Church or Baxter Fire and Rescue may be left at the funeral home or the church the morning of the service.

Leonard, the son of Louis and Pauline (Kramm) Deeter, was born on March 10, 1924 at his family home in rural Rhodes, Iowa.  He grew up in rural Baxter and graduated from Baxter High School.  Leonard was united in marriage with Betty J. Warner on January 31, 1946 in Winfield, Kansas.  They made their home in the rural Baxter area.

Leonard worked at the Maytag Company for over 40 years and also did farming and handyman jobs part-time.  He was a member of the Ira United Church where he served as the Treasurer for over 40 years and the UAW Local 997.  Leonard was extremely skilled in many areas including carpentry and plumbing.  Over the years he transformed his family’s home doing many updates and additions by hand.  He was a talented woodworker and handcrafted many trucks, animals and other wooden toys. He also was able to make his own patterns and create furniture pieces.  Leonard enjoyed being outdoors; gardening, sitting in the sunshine, or taking his golf cart down to his shop to read the paper.  Leonard read his Bible every day and it was very important to him that his family do the same.  Following the death of his wife in 2008, Leonard became an excellent baker and made pies, cakes, cookies, and more for family and friends.  He loved spending time with his family and also had a great smile on his face.

Those left to honor Leonard’s memory are his son, Kerry (Bobbie) Deeter of Grinnell; three daughters, Sandy (Andy) Conn of Grinnell, Pat (Mike) Pierce of Baxter, and Janet (Kevin) Reents of Newton; ten grandchildren, Kristi Daniel (Joshua Aman), Jodi Conn, Stacy (Patrick) Henningsen, Jami Elliott (Jesse Vais), Brian (Chris) Deeter, Justin Conn, Amy (Philip) Lorenz, Danny (Missy) Deeter, Steve (Amanda) Pierce, and Ashley (Josh) Oskam; his 32 great-grandchildren; 2 great-great-grandchildren; and his nieces and nephews.  He was preceded in death by his parents; wife, Betty Deeter; two great-grandchildren, Hunter Pierce and Trinity Oskam; brother, Norris Deeter; sister, Ethelyn Pate; and two brothers in infancy.

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