Wayne A. Behrens

Wayne A. Behrens, 82, of Davenport, died Saturday, December 14, 2024 at his home surrounded by family. Keeping with his wishes, cremation rites will take place and burial will be in Elwood Cemetery, Elwood, Iowa at a later date.  Halligan-McCabe-DeVries Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements.

Wayne Behrens was born on October 14, 1942 in Toronto, Iowa, the son of John W. and Berniece (Lietz) Behrens.

Wayne graduated from Elwood, IA High School in 1960 in a class size of 10. He continued his education in Clinton Community College, Gale Institute IBM training in Minneapolis, MN before enrolling in the State Teachers College of Iowa (UNI), Cedar Falls, IA in 1963. He graduated with a B.A. in Industrial Arts & Biology before beginning a teaching career in 1966.

It was during his undergraduate studies where he met and married Judy L. Faulkner from Webster City, IA. They married in 1966 and had a son, John T. Behrens, in 1967 while also starting his teaching career with the Davenport Community School District. They attended UNI during the summers and in 1972 he received his Masters degree.

Wayne taught from Sept. 1966-June 1998 at West High School as an auto mechanics and vocational instructor. He also taught night classes for adult education. He officially retired in October, 1998.

Wayne met Mary (Evans, Hurst) before his retirement. They had a loving relationship for many years and eventually married on Feb. 14, 2007. They remained married until her death on Sept. 13, 2023. Together they traveled and were dedicated to raising their grandchildren.

Wayne’s spare time was filled with helping others, tackling large projects on his own, working on lawn mowers, fixing anything others considered trash, and collecting a lifetime of “Good” junk. He loved to be near his family and spending time with his grandchildren. 

Those left to cherish his memory are son, John Behrens (wife Kelly), grandchildren Alisa Thompson (husband Carter), John Karl Behrens (wife Megan), great-grandsons Colter Thompson (18 mos.), Wayne C. Behrens (2 mos.) and a third great-grandson expected in March, 2025.

He was preceded in death by his parents, and wife, Mary E. Behrens.