Obituary of Estyl Breazeale

Estyl King Breazeale passed away peacefully at Briarwood Health Care Center in Iowa City on September 29, 2017.

Services will be held 11am Tuesday, October 3rd at the First Presbyterian Church in Iowa City. Visitation will be held from 4-7 pm Monday at the Gay & Ciha Funeral Service in Iowa City. There will be a private burial in Oakland Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made in her name to the First Presbyterian Church or University of Iowa Museum of Art.

Estyl was born on August 12, 1923, a daughter of George Marion “Pat” and Gladys White King. She attended schools in Salem, graduating from Salem High School. While attending Salem High, she began dating Richard Breazeale. They were married in April 1946 at the Salem Congregational Church, when Richard returned from his service in the army. They spent sixty-seven wonderful years together.

Richard’s job with the Maytag Corporation took the family from Newton to Canada in 1959, where they stayed for three years. Choosing to return to the U.S., they put down roots in Iowa City. Estyl was a stay-at-home mom with two young children and then enrolled at the University of Iowa when the boys started going to school, making sure her class schedule didn’t interfere with theirs. She taught Home Economics at Central Junior High and Southeast Junior High in Iowa City for several years. After retiring, she volunteered as a docent at the University of Iowa Museum of Art and at First Presbyterian Church, where she was in charge of meal planning for events. She enjoyed a healthy life, and was most happy in the kitchen making nutritious meals for family and friends. For several years, through Friendship Force, Richard and Estyl hosted foreign visitors in their home. They also belonged to a ballroom dance club.

Those left to cherish her memory include son, Mike (Betty) of Iowa City, brothers, Bill (Mount Pleasant, IA), Bob (Rogers, AK), and Charles (Memphis, MO), sisters, Katherine Ross (Mount Pleasant, IA) and Patti (Barney) Nicol (Wallace, North Carolina), two sisters-in-law, a brother-in-law, and many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents; husband; son, Bruce; brothers, Jim, Merlin, and Rex, and sisters, Joanne, Linda, and Marilyn.