Russell "Russ" C Pyle

Russell “Russ” Craig Pyle, 64, of Baxter died on Monday, August 31, 2020, in rural Radcliffe, Iowa.  A graveside service will be held at 1:00 p.m., Tuesday, September 8, at Restland Cemetery in Baxter.  Memorials in Russ’ name (checks made payable to Jamie Pfantz) may be left at cemetery the day of the service or at the Wallace Family Funeral Home and Crematory.

Russ, the son of Gary G. and Carol Jean (Petermeier) Pyle, was born on November 6, 1955 in Marshalltown.  He was a lifelong resident of the Baxter area and graduated from Baxter High School in the class of 1973. On August 19, 1977 he was united in marriage with Brenda Stubbe. Russ worked for the State of Iowa in the Department of Transportation for 35 years, retiring this past April.  He was a member of the Izaak Walton League and Moose Lodge.  He was a former trustee at the UCC Church in Baxter and had served as a circuit rider for the 125th anniversary of the church.   Russ also was a past Baxter city council member.  Many of his activities involved his love of children including coaching softball for 12 years, many of those years he coached two teams at one time, and organizing a horse camp for kids to learn how to ride horses.  Russ also enjoyed riding motorcycle, dancing, and horseback riding.  He was always a true family man and great friend.  Russ never wanted to miss an activity that his grandchildren were involved in and was looking forward to that even more in his retirement.  He always “showed up” for people lending a hand, visiting when someone was in the hospital, or just calling his daughter to say “Hi, I love you.”  It was also true that if any of those nice deeds were repaid by a slice of pie, Russ’ day would be made. 

Russ is survived by his daughter, Jamie (Rick) Pfantz of State Center; three grandchildren, Clair, Austin, and Carli Pfantz; two brothers; his brother-in-law, Stephen “Smitty” Smith of Baxter; many nieces and nephews, including his boys, Justin, Jeremy, and J.J.; Brenda Pyle of Baxter; and his significant other, Lisa Lems of Rhodes and her family.  He was preceded in death by his maternal and paternal grandparents; his parents; sister, Janie Smith; and uncle, Jimmy Pyle. 

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