Brenda Joyce (Miller) Williams, 83, went to be with her Lord and Savior on January 24, 2024, in Gower, MO. Celebration of life will be held in April (date TBD) at Calvary Baptist Church in Clarinda, IA, with lunch following the service. Please bring memories of Brenda to share. In lieu of flowers, memorials may go to Calvary Baptist, Clarinda, IA. Burial will be in Memory Cemetery, Page County, IA.
Brenda was born in Villisca, IA on December 26, 1940, to Charles Irvin and Wilma Wyleen (Peterman) Miller. Brenda grew up in southwest Iowa with her brother Jim; Irvin and Wyleen farmed. Brenda attended country schools and graduated from New Market High School in 1959.
Brenda loved Jesus. She became a believer at age 14 and was baptized around that time. Brenda studied her Bible regularly and was very knowledgeable on Eschatology (the study of prophecy and end times). She served Him faithfully for many years, teaching Sunday School, playing the piano and bringing the best food to church dinners, especially those sheet cake brownies!
Brenda met Donald Lee Williams on a blind date in 1955 and they were married July 31, 1959, at New Market United Methodist church in New Market, IA. When she passed away, Brenda still owned the red and white 1957 Ford Fairlane that she and Don drove on dates and to their wedding. Don and Brenda were married three weeks short of 50 years, before Don went before her to meet Jesus on July 7, 2009.
Brenda (and Don) worked at Berry Seed Company and then Brenda started her book-keeping and tax business, Mail-Me-Monday. Brenda had her business for over 40 years.
Don and Brenda had one child, Brenda J. Brenda was the best mom. Besides buying a Shetland pony for “Brenda Jo” for $10 at the Clarinda Sales barn, she rode horses any time either of them wanted to ride. When highway 71 was being rebuilt, Brenda took Brenda Jo through the mud to the school bus on horseback. She also took Brenda Jo to the Clarinda pool many summer afternoons on the back of her motorcycle – the red 350 Honda with the sissy bar.
Brenda loved horses. She went to many horse shows and had bunches of trophies and ribbons. On one of her favorite horses, Sun Dance, Brenda barrel-raced, ran shovel races, ran Sir Galahad races and went on many, many trail rides with the Clarinda Saddle Club. She bought Sun Dance as a yearling and buried him in the pasture he had lived in for 27 years when he died at the age of 30.
Brenda did things that women did not typically do in the 60s and 70s: She rode a motorcycle, drove a school bus, was fantastic with woodworking - she built her kitchen cabinets when she remodeled her kitchen, built wooden elves that always stood around the Christmas tree, built Brenda Jo a huge 4-H box that held all the tack for the Page County fair, built a rabbit carrier to take all the different rabbits to the fair, paneled Brenda Jo’s bedroom with blue wood paneling and black trim. Among all the other things, Brenda painted and did body repair work on their cars. In the 80s, Brenda started working with computers and was able to build her own computer from scratch in the 90s.
Brenda moved to live with her daughter (Brenda) and son-in-law Oscar in St Joseph, MO in December 2016. Brenda enjoyed all the noise and activity in the house, as well as activities outside the house, with her three grandchildren Cara, Alex and Jacob. Over the years, Brenda helped with Boy Scout opportunities, and she got to relive all those 4-H fair projects all over again!
In January 2024, Brenda moved to the Gower Convalescent Home when dementia had progressed, and she needed greater care.
Those that preceded Brenda: Husband Don; parents Irvin and Wyleen; in-laws Bus and Fern Williams; brothers-in-law John Thornton and Charles Kemery; and sister-in-law Sandi Boyer.
Her memory is cherished by: Daughter Brenda and husband Oscar Velazquez; grandchildren Oscar Jr., Cara, Alex and Jacob Velazquez and Sophie Baumgartner; brother Jim and wife Connie Miller; sister-in-law Beverly Thornton Kemery; two nieces, five nephews and their respective spouses; many cousins and many friends.
With this, we celebrate the life that Brenda Joyce Williams led: She was an example of Godliness, and she was one of the nicest people you’d ever meet. We will miss her.
A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date. Cremation under the direction of Simplify Cremations & Funerals. Online guest book and obituary at www.simplifyfunerals.com.
