Obituary of Bernard J. Fox

Bernard John “Rusty” Fox, 88 of Iowa City died Tuesday, May 25, 2010, at the Parkview Manor Care Center in Wellman. Funeral Mass will be held at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, May 29, 2010, at St. Wenceslaus Catholic Church in Iowa City. Visitation will be one hour prior to the service at the church. A memorial fund has been established in his memory. Online condolences may be sent through the web @ www.gayandciha.com. Bernard John Fox, nick named ‘Rusty Fox’ after his sandy red hair, was born Sept 1, 1921 to Matthew and Virginia Fox of St. Paul, Kansas. Bernard, the oldest of five siblings, was educated at St. Francis Catholic School during the years of the Great Depression and learned the carpenter trade from his father. Bernard enlisted in the Navy during the early months of WWII and served for 3 ½ years as a Gunners Mate on merchant marine vessels in the South Pacific theater. When the war ended he moved to Iowa City where a friend was building Quonset huts for the University of Iowa to house the large number of veterans returning to school on the GI bill. While in Iowa City Bernard met and married Elizabeth Steffensen of West Branch. They were married on Jan 29, 1948 at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Iowa City. His career led him to Alcoa Aluminum in Bettendorf, his own business, B.J. Construction, in Muscatine, Iowa and half ownership of Muscatine Bridge and Culvert Co., building bridges and culverts for the developing interstate system and other areas in Iowa. Bernard retired from construction in 1983 after a severe heart attack. While recovering from by-pass surgery he began following his life long dream of sailing by building a 43ft sailboat in his barn south of Iowa City which was launched into the Mississippi at Bettendorf, Iowa in the Spring of 1989. Bernard named the boat ‘Honey Bunny’ after his nickname for Elizabeth. They sailed away to Lake Michigan, down the Mississippi and inland waterways to Pensacola, Florida where they lived on ‘Honey Bunny’ until Bernard was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2004 when they returned to their home in Iowa City to be a ‘2 acre farmer’. Bernard passed away peacefully on May 25th, 2010 from complications of Alzheimer’s with his loving wife, Elizabeth, by his side. Bernard’s good nature, kind heart, energy and boundless optimism will be missed. Bernard is survived by his wife, Elizabeth, of Iowa City, their son, Michael and his wife Marsha of Centennial, Colorado, his sisters Lois Riley of Overland Park, Kansas and Vivian High of Medford, Oregon, his brother Matt Fox Jr. and his half brother John Fox, both of Muscatine, Iowa. He was preceded in death by three little angels – his parents, his step mother, Jean and his step father, Frank. Also his brother in law Tom Riley of Overland Park, Kansas.