Donald “Don” Motz Jr., age 69 of Perry, passed away on Saturday, April 9, 2022. Funeral services will be held on Tuesday, April 19, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. at the Lutheran Church of Hope in West Des Moines. The funeral service will be livestreamed at the following link: http://hopeonline.tv/
Donald Charles Motz Jr. was born on February 21, 1953, at Davenport, IA to Donald Charles and Dorothy J. (Ovens) Motz Sr. He graduated from high school at Bennett, Iowa. He was united in marriage to Donna J. Weishaar at Living History Farms in Urbandale on November 30, 2013. He worked at John Deere in Moline, IL, the McCreary Community Center in Perry, IA, then worked at Spring Brook State Park near Yale, IA, before retiring from Camp Dodge at the age of 57. This enabled him to work as a “part timer” for pleasure at the Heartland Co-Op in Panora, IA, and he drove a bus for Human Resources in West Des Moines, IA.
He was a member of the Lutheran Church of Hope, numerous motorcycle clubs and associations, paddle clubs, and he proudly served on the Perry Fire Department for 26 years. Don was an outdoorsman. He loved hiking canoeing, biking, gardening, motorcycle trips, and fishing with his family. He would often take his grandkids, along with their friends, and find guaranteed fishing holes – even if it was to just feed the “dinks.” Their excitement at reeling in a fish brought him so much joy – it didn’t matter if it was the smallest or the largest fish of the day. Don played slow pitch softball well past the age most people give it up, participated in a pickleball league, bowled in “geezer” bowling, and enjoyed going to Drake & ISU basketball games, as well as Iowa Cubs baseball games. He was always down for a card or board game and was impossible to slow down.
Don loved to make people laugh. He encouraged people to not take life too seriously, and you could never have enough ice cream and cookies! He was a good listener and was not afraid to offer his advice – even when he knew you wouldn’t want to hear what was said. He wasn’t afraid to talk about the hard stuff. He always had a smile on his face and his laugh is a sound that will always be missed and remembered. His laughs were always the loudest when playing Aggravation. In our house, we call it “Kill Alex”. No sympathy or mercy was granted in that game, and the laughs and chuckles that he emitted when he’d ask the card gods for a specific card number, then flip it over and crush someone, is unforgettable. It’s because of him that our family has a tradition and love for playing games.
In death he rejoins his father, Donald Motz Sr., and mother, Dorothy Quinn.
Left to cherish Don’s memory are his wife Donna Weishaar Motz, children, Denise (Alex) Holladay, Paula Motz-Lucas, and David Motz, grandchildren, Madison and Natalie Motz, his sister, Connie Bonne and a stepsister, Lorie (Tim) Connelly.