Dale L. Feser
July 25, 1952 — April 27, 2019
Dale Leo Feser was born July 25, 1952 in Manning, Iowa, the second son of Leo and Bernice (Schulte) Feser. Dale attended both Elementary and High School in Irwin, Iowa. He was the right hand to his mother in helping on the family farm near Defiance, Iowa. Dale was very shy and quiet as a teen. He loved animals, and had dreamed of becoming a veterinarian.
Dale attended Iowa Western Community College at the Clarinda Campus for two years. Then Dale entered Iowa State University in the Forestry Program. Dale turned his vision towards working for the National Park Service. Dale was not able to complete his degree in the 1970's. He later returned to college as a working husband and father to earn his BA in Entrepreneurship from Buena Vista University.
Dale worked in various construction jobs until he was hired at Wilson Seeds in 1981 as a field researcher. This position enabled him to travel to Hawaii to help research the prospect of raising corn on the island of Molokai. He worked as Quality Control of seed production at Remington Seed until he was forced into early retirement in 2015, due to his declining health.
Dale was a hard worker yet loved to have fun. As a young man, he was known to deflate his car tires so he could “ride the rails”. Thankfully a train never came along to bump him off the tracks. Dale’s love of the National Parks never diminished, taking annual vacations in the Rockies. Twice he successfully hiked Long’s Peak, a climb of 14,259 ft. On one of those hikes he shared the trail with a NASA astronaut. He also enjoyed hiking to the bottom of the Grand Canyon. Over the years, Dale visited national parks from Yosemite in the west to Shenandoah in the east. His retirement dream was to not just visit, but to be resident campground host in as many national parks as possible.
Dale built two different homes he owned, working on them nights and weekends. Dale also volunteered with Habitat for Humanity for 12 years helping the less fortunate build homes. Dale was a long time member of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Irwin holding the position of treasurer for over 10 years. Besides the time he donated to his church and Habitat, he served several years on 4-H Extension Council. After his health forced him to stop working, Dale still found ways to volunteer. He did park clean-up and maintenance for the DNR. As well as volunteering for Shelby County Community Outreach. To the end Dale was generous and always willing to give to others. As a final act of generosity, Dale made the decision to donate his body to science.
In 2005, Dale met Maureen Hale in Omaha, Nebraska. One of their strong connections was the love of the Rockies. So it was only appropriate the they were married in Estes Park in 2007. They spent their honeymoon doing what else - hiking in RMNP! Dale was very excited to become “dad” to her three children, as he had always wanted more children of his own. He was also a loving Grandpa to her four young granddaughters who affectionately called him Gampa Dale.
Dale died on Saturday, April 27, 2019 at Avoca Specialty Care in Avoca, Iowa, attaining the age of sixty-six years, nine months and two days. He was preceded in death by his older brother, Leslie who died as an infant; his father Leo Feser in 2001; and his mother, Bernice Feser in 2007.
Dale has left behind his wife Maureen Hale Feser of Harlan, Iowa; three children from his first marriage, Holly (Brian) Stessman of Omaha, Nebraska; Kelsey (Jenny) Arkle of Rock Island, Illinois; Zachary (Amy) Feser of Indianola, Iowa; his sister Karen (Denny) Boger of Dallas Center, Iowa; stepchildren Cole (Carey) Haston of Lenexa, Kansas; Jesse (Kavitha) Andersen of San Francisco, California; Theresa Andersen of Athens, Georgia; 4 step-granddaughters; and his very large extended family and friends.
In lieu of flowers family suggest memorials to Parkinson's Association.
Dale attended Iowa Western Community College at the Clarinda Campus for two years. Then Dale entered Iowa State University in the Forestry Program. Dale turned his vision towards working for the National Park Service. Dale was not able to complete his degree in the 1970's. He later returned to college as a working husband and father to earn his BA in Entrepreneurship from Buena Vista University.
Dale worked in various construction jobs until he was hired at Wilson Seeds in 1981 as a field researcher. This position enabled him to travel to Hawaii to help research the prospect of raising corn on the island of Molokai. He worked as Quality Control of seed production at Remington Seed until he was forced into early retirement in 2015, due to his declining health.
Dale was a hard worker yet loved to have fun. As a young man, he was known to deflate his car tires so he could “ride the rails”. Thankfully a train never came along to bump him off the tracks. Dale’s love of the National Parks never diminished, taking annual vacations in the Rockies. Twice he successfully hiked Long’s Peak, a climb of 14,259 ft. On one of those hikes he shared the trail with a NASA astronaut. He also enjoyed hiking to the bottom of the Grand Canyon. Over the years, Dale visited national parks from Yosemite in the west to Shenandoah in the east. His retirement dream was to not just visit, but to be resident campground host in as many national parks as possible.
Dale built two different homes he owned, working on them nights and weekends. Dale also volunteered with Habitat for Humanity for 12 years helping the less fortunate build homes. Dale was a long time member of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Irwin holding the position of treasurer for over 10 years. Besides the time he donated to his church and Habitat, he served several years on 4-H Extension Council. After his health forced him to stop working, Dale still found ways to volunteer. He did park clean-up and maintenance for the DNR. As well as volunteering for Shelby County Community Outreach. To the end Dale was generous and always willing to give to others. As a final act of generosity, Dale made the decision to donate his body to science.
In 2005, Dale met Maureen Hale in Omaha, Nebraska. One of their strong connections was the love of the Rockies. So it was only appropriate the they were married in Estes Park in 2007. They spent their honeymoon doing what else - hiking in RMNP! Dale was very excited to become “dad” to her three children, as he had always wanted more children of his own. He was also a loving Grandpa to her four young granddaughters who affectionately called him Gampa Dale.
Dale died on Saturday, April 27, 2019 at Avoca Specialty Care in Avoca, Iowa, attaining the age of sixty-six years, nine months and two days. He was preceded in death by his older brother, Leslie who died as an infant; his father Leo Feser in 2001; and his mother, Bernice Feser in 2007.
Dale has left behind his wife Maureen Hale Feser of Harlan, Iowa; three children from his first marriage, Holly (Brian) Stessman of Omaha, Nebraska; Kelsey (Jenny) Arkle of Rock Island, Illinois; Zachary (Amy) Feser of Indianola, Iowa; his sister Karen (Denny) Boger of Dallas Center, Iowa; stepchildren Cole (Carey) Haston of Lenexa, Kansas; Jesse (Kavitha) Andersen of San Francisco, California; Theresa Andersen of Athens, Georgia; 4 step-granddaughters; and his very large extended family and friends.
In lieu of flowers family suggest memorials to Parkinson's Association.
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Dale L. Feser, please visit our flower store.