Clifford LeRoy Fudge

Clifford “Cliff” LeRoy Fudge, 87, of Newton, Iowa, passed away peacefully on November 15, 2024, surrounded by his family.

Cliff was born on May 26, 1937, in a home in Massena, Iowa, to Carroll Milo and Freda (Hoyt) Fudge. He was raised in the Atlantic, Iowa area and savored memories of his time working on his Uncle Glen’s farm, and frequently reminisced about stripping bluegrass, milking cows and slopping the hogs. “Cliff and his damn cats,” is how his sister, Char, described his tender young heart towards animals.

He enjoyed his high school years, was elected President of Atlantic High School Class of 1956 and loved attending his class reunions. He married his high school sweetheart, Josephine Ruth Thatcher, on January 19, 1958, in Atlantic.

After high school, Cliff attended trade school in Kansas City and earned an Automotive Mechanics Certification, hitchhiking back to Atlantic on weekends to visit Jo. Encouraged by his future father-in-law, he attended Northwest Missouri State and then transferred to the University of Iowa, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering in 1964.

Other than a brief stint at Allis Chalmers, Cliff spent the majority of his career with The Maytag Company where he began as a Tool Engineer and ultimately directed the Tool Engineering Department. He took pride in his work and could be relied upon to keep the factory line running. He retired in January 1995, after 28.8 years of service. During his retirement he enjoyed being a landlord of several apartments and homes in Newton, being a goofy grandpa, traveling in his GMC RV with friends, attending dances with Jo, mowing his acreage and feeding deer and birds.

A Master Problem Solver, Cliff enjoyed mechanical and physical hobbies, which included building with his own enormous hands the family home on his acreage, restoring antique cars (1926 & 1928 Chevrolets and a 1946 Ford), crafting a 1929 Mercedes Gazelle Kit car, and maintaining his various tractors, skid loaders and mowers. Cliff loved playing with and teaching children, gave generously of time as Scoutmaster for his son’s Boy Scout Troop at Emerson Hough and donated 14 gallons of blood over his lifetime.

Cliff is survived by his wife, Jo, his sister, Charlotte Mauk, two daughters, Jacqueline (William) Hunt, Lora (Michael) Noesen, eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, two sisters (Margaret, Phyllis) and two older brothers (Delmar, Breton) and his son, Dr. Jonathan Fudge.

A visitation with family to honor Cliff’s life will be held on Saturday, November 23rd at the Newton Village Senior Living Facility’s first floor Activity Room from 1:30 to 4:00 pm. Cliff valued education and supporting those with a financial need seeking a degree. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to The Clifford L. and Jo Ruth Fudge Scholarship Fund for Engineering Students at the University of Iowa. Contributions can be made payable to the “State University of Iowa Foundation” and mailed to: State University of Iowa Foundation, P.O. Box 4550, Iowa City, Iowa 52244-4550 with the scholarship name noted in the memo line. Or online at https://www.foriowa.org.

A REAL MAN

He doesn’t look up to the rich,

Nor does he look down on the poor.

He can lose face without squealing;

He has learned through life to endure.

He can win without loudly bragging;

He’s too generous and kind to cheat.

He’s too sensible to be lazy,

And he’s scornful of wrong and deceit.

He takes a measure of this world’s goods,

And allows all others their share.

He’s nice to old folks and children,

he’s a real man who loves and cares.

-Rosemary Perry

Weatherford, Texas