William “Bill” Kallaus
KALLAUS, LEENEY, DEFRANCE, SLATER, SUCHOMEL, SEVERIN, SCHUSTER
Posted By: Sarah Fletcher (email)
Date: 3/21/2024 at 08:59:40
William “Bill” Kallaus, 76, of Iowa City, passed away on March 11, 2024 at the Iowa City VA Medical Center.
Visitation will be held from 9:00-10:00 a.m. on Friday, March 15, 2024 at St. Mary Catholic Church. Mass of Christian Burial will follow at 10:00 a.m. Interment will be at St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery.
Bill was born in Iowa City on July 28, 1947, to Kenneth and Mary (Leeney) Kallaus. He graduated Regina High School in 1965. While in high school, Bill helped start and operate Coral Marina at Coralville Lake. He and his brother built the house, cabins, and docks on the property. After attending Outboard Motor School in Wisconsin just after high school, Bill began repairing outboard motors at the marina.
While working at the marina, Bill enlisted in the United States Navy and proudly served between 1968-1975. He served two years active duty in Vietnam from 1968-1970 and finished the remainder of his service in the US Navy Reserves. During his tour in Vietnam, he served in the Brown Water Navy and was stationed on several different Landing Ship Tanks (LST’s) which navigated the rivers to bring supplies and ammunition to Army and Marine Corps troops in the combat zone. Following his tour in Vietnam, he returned to his hometown, Iowa City.
In 1970 he married Jackie DeFrance, and to this union three sons were born. While starting a family, he attended Kirkwood Community College then transferred to the University of Iowa where he earned a BGS degree and a BBA in Accounting in 1975. After college the family lived in Slidell, LA from 1979-1982 and would later move to Austin, TX. The couple divorced and Bill moved back to Iowa City in 1984 where he helped with his parents’ family business, Funcrest Bait and Tackle near the Coralville Lake Dam. His parents purchased Funcrest in 1969 after selling Coral Lake Marina.
In 1997, Bill took over Funcrest where he made improvements to the property and expanded the campgrounds. He worked tirelessly day in and day out to maintain the business, including cutting and wrapping firewood, bagging ice, stocking shelves, making fishing tackle and general maintenance. His business was his passion, and he mostly enjoyed visiting with his customers.
Bill enjoyed fishing and hunting, playing euchre and cribbage, cooking, and spending time with his family. He was an avid follower of all University of Iowa sports. Most of all, he loved reminiscing about the history of Iowa City and long drives through the Iowa countryside.
Bill is survived by his three sons: Mark and Heather (Slater), Tim and Meritt (Suchomel) and Scott and Sandi (Severin); grandchildren: (Mark) Cameron, Savannah, Kadein, Brynnlie, Rylen, Easton, (Tim) Hazel, Rosemary, Everett, (Scott) Alli, Carson and Samuel; great grandchildren: (Mark) Orion, Freya, Opal and Frankie (due in August), and his special companion of many years, Sylvia Schuster. He was preceded in death by his parents and brother, James.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Knights of Columbus.
Lensing Funeral & Cremation Service
Johnson Obituaries maintained by Cindy Booth Maher.
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