Heidi Kayser

Heidi Louise Kayser, 62, passed away peacefully on Sunday, May 18, 2025, at the Mary Greeley Israel Family Hospice House in Ames, Iowa, surrounded by her family, eight weeks after being diagnosed with cancer. Visitation will be held on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in Webster City from 4:00-7:00 PM. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:30 AM on Thursday, May 22, 2025, at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church. The family has chosen Boman Funeral Home (www.bomanfh.com) to care for their needs.

Born on February 18, 1963, to Edward and Marjorie Meyer, Heidi was the seventh of nine children and grew up on the family dairy farm near Clarksville, Iowa. Passionate about Guernsey cows, she proudly served as National Guernsey Princess in 1983.

Heidi graduated from Clarksville High in 1981 and earned her BA in Art Teaching from UNI in 1985. On December 29, 1984, she married Jeff Kayser after a whirlwind six-month romance. For 40 years, he showed his love by giving her a dozen red roses every Valentine’s Day.

An accomplished artist, Heidi created cherished watercolor paintings and hand-designed Christmas cards for four decades. She spent 40 years teaching art across Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri, currently serving as Middle School Art Teacher for Webster City Schools. She was known for inspiring creativity and organizing “Celebration of the Arts” shows to showcase her beloved student’s artwork. She disliked coloring books, instead encouraging students to express themselves freely by drawing without any lines to restrict their creativity.

Heidi was also a master landscaper, winning “Yard of the Week” honors in multiple communities. She enjoyed vintage antiques, seasonal home décor, and holiday traditions. Her favorite things included artwork by Grant Wood or Bob Ross, eating watermelon, the movie “The Sandlot” and the fern leaf peony flower.

Heidi hated to cook but became renowned for making her special recipe of Special K bars. They were always in the fridge and taken to all family gatherings, school events, given as care packages for the kids at college, and later became formed into the shape and design of footballs that were shared with friends and visiting team guests at Hawkeye football tailgating.

Heidi’s family includes her husband Jeff; four children: Candace (Andy) Orris of Tiffin, IA, Dr. Nick (Sara) Kayser of Cedar Rapids, IA, Amber (Brent) Dostal, of Tama, IA, and Luke (Dr. Kylee) Kayser of Waukee, IA; eight grandchildren: Rielly, Caden, Zoey, Noah, Jayce, Molly, Boedi, and Henry; siblings: Steve (Barb) Meyer, Anita (Dr. Jim) Kowalski, David Meyer, Stan (Denise) Meyer, Tom (Brenda) Meyer, and Ginger (Scott) Schild; brother in law: Dan Gritzner. She was preceded in death by her parents, sisters: Diana Gritzner and Rosemary (Joel) Sult; niece Gina; and nephews: Kain and Brady.