Obituaries : Willis Bertram Daugherty

Willis Bertram Daugherty

Willis Bertram Daugherty passed away after a short illness on Dec. 21, 2011, at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City, with his family at his side. Willis lived a full and colorful life, touching all who knew him.

Visitation will take place from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 23, at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, 1340 Third Ave. SE, Cedar Rapids, (319) 363-2058. At 7 p.m., a service and celebration of Willis’ life will follow the visitation. Burial will take place at 11 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 24, at Evergreen Cemetery, Vinton, and is open to the public. Arrangements are entrusted to Cedar Memorial Park Funeral Home, (319) 393-8000.

He was born in 1929 in Vinton, Iowa, to Robert Daugherty (died 1965), a farmer, and Josephine Daugherty (died 1991), who was a pianist for silent movies and later worked as nutritionist for St. Luke’s Hospital in Cedar Rapids. He was the second of four brothers, Robert (born1928), John (died 2008), and Charles (born 1946). The Daugherty family lived in various farm communities in Iowa: Shellsburg (1928-1933), Walker (1933-1945), Prairie Creek (1945-1947), Mount Auburn Road (1947-1952) and Belle Plaine (1952-1955).

As a youngster, Willis helped with milking the cows, feeding the horses and cleaning the stalls every morning before walking several miles down a desolate gravel road to Sardinia Number 9, a one-room country grade school located near Walker. As a teenager, Willis rode his Indian motorcycle to Vinton High School, where he was an accomplished student and basketball player. He is still remembered for scoring a winning basket by shooting the basketball while lying on his back!

Upon graduation from Vinton High School in 1948, Willis worked from 1949-1950 at Wilson and Co. Meat Packing; he was also a “Fuller Brush Man” door-to-door salesman, and an ambulance driver. In 1951, he enlisted in the Marine Corps and was stationed at Camp Pendleton in San Diego. From 1951-1953, he served in the Marines on the front lines of the Korean War as a Sergeant of Field Artillery.

In 1953, he met Evelyn Daugherty, an amateur singer and teacher of physical education in the Vinton public schools, and they were married at Camp Pendleton in 1953. After Willis received an honorable discharge from the Marine Corps, they settled in Cedar Rapids in 1954.

Willis and Evelyn were the proud parents of five boys who all became professional musicians. With the help of Willis, who drove the band across the state, the Daugherty brothers formed The Soul Company, a popular music group that performed at high school proms and dances. The Daugherty family lived at various residences in Cedar Rapids, including 1547 Fifth Ave. SE (1958-1977), 6821 Kiowa Trace NE (1978-1986) and 430 Liberty Dr. SE (1987-2011).

Traveling was an important pastime for the Daugherty family. They took road trips to Mount Rushmore and Miami Beach and, in 1968, the entire Daugherty family took a memorable two-week vacation to London, England.

In Cedar Rapids, Willis was employed as a used-car salesman at Rapids Chevrolet (1955-1960), as a store manager in downtown Cedar Rapids at Craemers (1960-1965) and Seiferts (1965-1992), where he retired at the age of 62.

Willis also played drums with a variety of country and western and jazz dance bands in the Cedar Rapids area, including the Cady Brothers (1954-1960), Dick Claus Quartet at the old Shorewood restaurant (1960-1968), Don Miller Band (1969-1982) and Dixie Notes Plus Big Band (2003-2011). He also frequently performed at the What Cheer Opera House with such country music stars as Leo Greco, Dale Thomas and Dick Miller.

After the premature death of his wife Evelyn in 1974, Willis continued to lead an active life in the Cedar Rapids area, working at Seiferts, playing as dance band drummer with many of Iowa’s finest musicians, doing community service, and enjoying his many close friends, among them Mary Jo Rouse (died 2007) and members of the “Over the Hill Gang.” He regularly attended concerts by the Cedar Rapids Symphony and the Municipal Band, and enjoyed music performances at Brucemore, Coe College, the Freedom Festival and Jazz under the Stars.

In the summer of 2003, Willis was featured playing the drums (and the spoons) in a musical evening together with all of his sons at Brucemore with many friends and family in attendance.

Willis was an active member of Cedar Christian Church (1955-1967), where he was a Sunday school teacher, and St. Paul’s United Methodist Church (1968-2011). Willis was a member of the Cedar Rapids American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the Marine Corps League. He was an active booster for the Emerald Knights Drum and Bugle Corps (1965-1981), served as a tour guide at Brucemore Mansion (1999-2009) and helped build homes in the Cedar Rapids area for Habitat for Humanity. He used to say that one day he would write a memoir entitled, “How to Look Good in a Wrinkled Suit.”

Willis is survived by his five sons and their families: Michael Daugherty (born 1954) and his wife, Yopie Prins, and their daughter, Evelyn, of Ann Arbor, Mich.; Pat Daugherty (born 1956) and his wife, Jennifer Conley, and their son, Rex, of New York City; Tim Daugherty (born 1958) and his son, Will, and stepson, Chad, of Cedar Rapids; Matt Daugherty (born 1959) and his wife, Sandra Gonzalez-Daugherty, and their daughter, Johanna, of Pembroke Pines, Fla.; and Tom Daugherty (born 1961) of Cedar Rapids. He is also survived by his brother, Robert Daugherty, and his son, Rob, of Fort Worth, Texas; Mary, the wife of his brother, John Daugherty (died 2006), and their children, Debra and Pam of Marshalltown and Jerry of Coralville; and his brother, Charles Daugherty and his wife, Patricia, and their children, Shannon, Chad and Jason, of Cedar Rapids and numerous nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to the Evelyn Daugherty Memorial Vocal Music Scholarship, c/o Cedar Rapids Community School Foundation, David T. Hayes, 907 15th St. SW, Cedar Rapids, IA 52404 (319) 558-2400.

Please leave a message, tribute or memory to the Daugherty family at www.cedarmemorial.com under Obituaries.