Wayne V. Maak

Wayne Vernon Maak passed away the morning of Dec. 1, 2024, in Altoona, Iowa at the age of 83.

Wayne was born Oct. 13, 1941, in Carroll, Iowa, to Vernon Pete Maak and Caroline Louise Kock. He graduated from Ar-We-Va High School in Westside, Iowa, in May 1959. Wayne’s father died when he was 10 and his mother later married Wayne’s stepfather, Leslie Jensen.

Wayne was the first in his family to attend college, earning a bachelor’s degree in 1963 in Industrial Education from Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa.

Later in 1963, on Aug. 18, Wayne married Karen Marie Sahler in Omaha, Nebraska. Together, the couple had three boys, Jeff, Kevin and Ross.

Wayne also started working for IBM’s Service Division in 1963 before retiring in 1992. He started in the Des Moines, Iowa, office, worked in the Ames, Iowa, office for many years and finished his career working in Colorado Springs and Denver, Colorado.

Wayne lived to see the world change dramatically. From birth to age 10, he and his family didn’t have electricity or indoor plumbing. Yet he got in on the ground floor of computer technology and enjoyed keeping up with the latest for most of his life.

Wayne was a proud fan and supporter of Iowa State University scholastic and athletic programs, attending football and men’s and women’s basketball games as often as possible and enjoying Osher Lifeline Learning Institutes (OLLI) classes at Iowa State in his later years.

He was a dedicated and fiercely loyal family man, often giving up his own convenience and comfort to provide the best possible life for his family. He was a demanding father, coming from a place of love and desire that his children lead happy and successful lives.

Wayne loved his family and his Lord deeply. He is survived by sons: Jeffrey (Becky) Maak, Kevin (Marcy) Maak, Ross (Christine Hafen) Maak; grandchildren: Travis (Danielle) Maak, Cara (Tucker) Duis, Daniel Maak, Nick Dey; great-grandchildren: Bristol Maak and Flynn and Tatum Duis; sister, Marcella (Edward) Neumann; nephew, Roger (Natalie) Neumann; and nieces: Sharon (David) Pederson, Julie Baker and Jennifer (Clark) Stroh.

Wayne was preceded in death by his wife, Karen, his parents, stepfather, and stepbrother Wallace (Leta) Jensen.

His funeral service will be held at 11:00 a.m., with visitation from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., all on Friday, December 6, 2024, at the Huebner Funeral Home in Westside. Interment will take place in the Westside Cemetery. 

Flowers are welcome, or in lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests that you consider becoming a member of Reiman Gardens or donating to them in Wayne's name.