Dean Branyord

Dean Darrell Branyord, 96 of Webster City, died on Friday, May 19, 2023, at Southfield Wellness Community in Webster City.  Visitation will be held at Boman Funeral Home (www.bomanfh.com), on Tuesday, May 23, 2023, from 1:00 PM-1:30 PM followed by the funeral service at 1:30 PM.  Burial will be at Graceland Cemetery, in Webster City.

Dean was one of five children born to Martin Ely and Ella (Amanda Amundson) Branyord on July 13, 1926 on a farm 3 miles east of Radcliffe, Iowa.   Dean has fond memories of attending the McCoy one room schoolhouse, running home to eat lunch his mother made.  Due to a brief family move to Ames, he flunked 7^th grade but graduated from Radcliff with the class of 1945.  He worked for Gamble Store in Radcliff, Morton Frozen Foods in Webster City, and farmed with his older brother in Webster City, then in Alden, Iowa.

 Dean met Alma Jensen at the skating rink, and they were married June 20, 1948. He worked briefly as a plumber’s assistant and at Beam Mfg.  1950 he learned the carpenter trade at Raven Millwork and Lumber Co.  In that capacity he recalls working on the Ft. Dodge mall.    1950 he and Alma and her family hand- built their home on Division Street in Webster City, where Dean resided until 2020.  In 1958 he set up Dean’s Cabinet Shop for 15 years.  Dean “retired” to the car wash on Seneca Street until he sold that. 

In the army Dean was 16 weeks at basic training in California and then 18 months in Germany (1952-1954) as part of the post-WWII occupation “54^th Engineer Combat Battalion”, proud of being a company clerk.  It was there he started playing the accordion although he would say he didn’t really play it until many years later.  He rehabbed several accordions.

Dean was a founding member of the Boone Valley Woodcarvers; he acquired many tools starting in 1973 and turned his garage into a shop with his collections.  He could recount what kind of wood each piece was made out of.  Dean started pieces on a lathe but liked hand tools best.  He donated an oak book stand to the Webster City library.   He recreated the Martin Luther Coat of Arms out of wood for Trinity Lutheran Church.  His smaller items include bowls, ring holders, letter opens “Felix” the clown, vases, birds.

Dean eventually made at least 4 dulcimers- one that rotated so he could play in 5 different keys and one from a gourd.  He played the dulcimer or the accordion with the Friday evening group at the Webster City Depot, and with various sub-groups at other gigs around the area.

Dean and Alma traveled to dance at polka festivals all over the country, always driving, most famously in Dean’s converted yellow camper van. 

Dean’s siblings Kermith, Arnold, Atlee, and Maxine Severson are all deceased.  Alma preceded him in death in 2013; sister-in-law Edith Jensen in 2016 and brother -in-law Aage Jensen in 2019.

Dean has Branyord living family in central Iowa including Jane Addams, Sharon Kay Ubben, Jim Mortvedt .  His Jensen niece is in Muscatine Iowa, Kristine Weis (Robert) and his Jensen nephew is David Jensen (Sara)  in Rogers, Arkansas.