Dewayne Wilbur WATKINS

WATKINS, JOHNSON, SCHMADEKE, FRERICKS, VANGEN, WOODS, HOFFMAN, HAMIEL, WILSON, REED

Posted By: Sarah Thorson Little (email)
Date: 7/12/2009 at 09:57:15

Dewayne Wilbur Watkins, 64, of 5434 Wabash St. SW, died Thursday, July 12, 2001, in St. Luke's Hospital after a long illness. Private services will be held at a later date. Arrangements by Teahen Funeral Home.

Survivors include his wife, Sherron; four sons, Dennis (Sheryl) Johnson, Clyde (Deb) Watkins and Charles Watkins, all of Cedar Rapids, and Randy (Caralee) Schmadeke of Marion; six daughters, Jennifer (Brandon) Frericks, Kimberly Schmadeke, Clara (Eric) Vangen and Connie (Shawn) Hoffman, all of Cedar Rapids, Kristan Schmadeke of Costa Mesa, Calif., and Candy Woods of Cottonwood, Ariz.; a brother, Harold (Viola) Watkins of Belmond; two sisters, Maxine Hamiel of Marshalltown and Lorraine (Bob) Wilson of Newport, Ore.; 15 grandchildren, Nicolette, Joel, Steffany, Stacy, Jayme, Eric, Tarin, Dylan, Brett, Angela, Chad, Beau, Steven, Gracie and Aaron; an expected first great-grandchild; two special babies, Brandon and Hannah; and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents.

Born March 22, 1937, in Clarion, to Clyde and Clara Reed Watkins, he attended a one-room schoolhouse in Popejoy and graduated from Popejoy High School in 1955. He married Sherron Johnson in Nashua on May 18, 1975. Dewayne worked for Rockwell International as a Model Mechanic for 37 years, retiring in December, 1992. He and his wife operated "Sherron's Sewing Machine Center" in Anamosa from 1984 to 1994, where he was a factory-trained sewing machine repairman. Dewayne was Scoutmaster for the Springville Boy Scouts in the early 1970s and a leader for the Hiawatha Boy Scouts in the early 1980s. He was involved in BMX racing with Dennis and Jennifer from 1981 to 1984. He thoroughly enjoyed fishing, boating, and grilling. Memorials may be directed to the family.

The Gazette, Cedar Rapids-Iowa City, IA
July 15, 2001