Obituary of Daniel Napierala

Daniel Napierala October 30, 1943 - August 10, 2022 Daniel Napierala was born to Leonard and Violet Napierala of Toledo, OH. His family moved to Iowa City during his sophomore year in high school where he attended City High. His passion was the sport of football and he played college football at Central Missouri State University. He acted as Assistant Football Coach at Dubuque Wahlert and City High in Iowa City. He later became Head Football Coach in Ida Grove, Iowa for 13 years. He jokingly would explain that he left coaching for “health reasons” as the local school board became “sick” of his losing record. He then moved on to becoming a District Sales Manager for the GOMACO Corporation in Ida Grove for 12 years. His sales management career included the Herman M Brown Company (also known as RMS) and Altorfer Caterpillar in Cedar Rapids. Dan’s hobbies included golf and traveling to Grand Cayman with close friends. He was an avid Hawkeye football fan. He left an impression on everyone he met! Dan spent summers in Iowa City sitting by his pool enjoying great music, his wife, friends and family. He will be greatly missed by those whose lives crossed paths with his life’s journey. Dan is survived by his wife Rebecca, two sons, Matt and Tony Napierala of Columbus, OH and Alta, IA, respectively. He also has a daughter, Mary Suzanne, of Iowa City, two sisters, Julie Tackenberg of Hillsborough, MO and Roseanne Strand of San Jose, CA. He has four grandsons, Joseph, Connor, Roman and Zarek Napierala. Services celebrating Dan’s life will be held Saturday, October 15, 2022, from 4 to 6 pm at Gay & Ciha Funeral and Cremation Service in Iowa City, with sharing of remarks, memories and toasting Dan’s life to begin at 6pm. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) and St Jude Children’s Research Hospital. For a complete obituary, to share a thought, memory or condolence please visit Gay & Ciha Funeral and Cremation Services website @ www.gayandciha.com. For those whose lives he touched he made the world a finer place!