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Dan W. Gafeller, 66, Springdale
Obituaries · May 14, 2015



Dan W. Gafeller, 66, died peacefully on Saturday, May 9, 2015, at his home in Springdale, Iowa, surrounded by family and friends.

Services will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday, May 14, 2015, at the Henderson-Barker Funeral Home in West Branch. Visitation will be 4 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, May 13, 2015, at the funeral home. Burial will be at Springdale Cemetery with military honors by the Tipton VFW Post 2537 and American Legion Post 123. Memorials may be made to Iowa City Hospice or Springdale United Methodist Church. Online condolences may be made to the family at hendersonbarkerfuneralhome.com.

Dan was born Sept. 17, 1948, in Iowa City, the son of Lester J. and Mary V. Droll Gafeller. He graduated from West Liberty High School in 1966. He served in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War from 1969 to 1971. He was united in marriage to Penny Holdeman in June 1974 in West Branch. He was employed with the Rock Island Railroad for several years. He then went on to work at North Star Steel for almost 35 years, retiring in 2008. He was a member of the Tipton VFW Post 2537.

Dan enjoyed spending time with his family. He also enjoyed fishing, hunting, camping as well as tinkering on projects, especially his 1969 Mustang. More recently, he enjoyed driving around and “looking for wildlife” with friends.

He is survived by his wife Penny Gafeller of Springdale; daughters: Nicki (Darrall) Brick of West Branch, Dana Gafeller (Chad Reed) of West Branch and Jodi (Wes) Clemens of Springdale; sisters: Lesta J. (Bill) Berry of Clearwater, Fla., and Linda C. Johnson of Muscatine; brother John Gafeller of West Liberty; a brother-in-law Stan Phelps of West Liberty; grandchildren Lexi, Kalvin and Dawson; and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents, sister Marilyn Phelps, sister-in-law Martha Gafeller, brother-in-law Raymond Johnson and great-niece Cora Gafeller.