Wayne died December 31, 2020 at the age of 98 from Prostate Cancer which was discovered five years earlier.

Private family burial will be in Memorial Cemetery in Le Mars.  A Celebration of Life Service will be held at a later date.  Arrangements are with the Rexwinkel Funeral Home in Le Mars.

Wayne Dack was born in June 1922 in the northwest Iowa town of LeMars.  At the time the population was probably less than 5,000, and it is now around 10,000.  Wayne's father, William, was a mechanic who worked on steam-driven tractors and later, automobiles.  His mother was a housewife who died when her only son was in his last year of high school.

It was in high school that he met his future wife, Evelyn Truesdell.   A favorite activity was to drive to Sioux City to go dancing to the music of the many bands that were popular at the time.  Wayne played the bass drum in the school's band. He also helped his father work on cars and learned wood working skills in a school shop class.

After high school he continued his education at the University of Iowa where he majored in Accounting; there were many trips back and forth to spend time with Evelyn.

Early in 1941, before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, it became apparent that the United States would likely become involved in the ongoing war.  Patriotism was high and Wayne enlisted in an Army Air Corps program to train pilots.  But the training capabilities of the nation were limited, and he returned to school to wait for his call to report.  When the call came, probably in early to mid-1943, he began an odyssey that included training in Missouri, Texas, California and Idaho.  Santa Ana was one of the bases in California and this was convenient because Evelyn had relocated from Iowa and was staying with her parents in Inglewood.

In March 1944 they were married and moved briefly to Fresno and other locations where Wayne finished advanced training as a B-24 pilot.  In June of 1944 the ten-man bomber crew headed east across the Atlantic Ocean on a night flight (no GPS) to the Azores and eventually Cerignola in Southern Italy.    While in Europe Wayne completed 35 combat missions to Germany, Austria, Rumania (Ploesti), and France.  By mid-1944 the Allied war effort was in high gear, so Wayne was back in the U.S. only seven months after departing the U.S.  After two weeks R & R in Florida with Evelyn he was assigned as an instructor pilot in Texas.  Then, the military realized they had more pilots than needed and Wayne was released from service.

He re-enrolled in School in September and a year and a half later graduated from the University of Iowa with a degree in Accounting.

Steven was born as Wayne was finishing school and then the family of three was off to Minneapolis for his first job, in public accounting.  After a time, he changed jobs to work for Toro Manufacturing (lawnmowers).  The job with Toro involved a brief assignment in Milwaukee, but then back to Minneapolis.  Barbara was born in 1948 in Minneapolis.

While in Minneapolis Wayne continued flying in the Reserves but ended that when he felt he wasn't getting enough flight time to remain current.

At Christmas time 1956 the family went to Southern California to visit relatives, and the much better weather resulted in the decision to leave the frozen north in favor of palm trees.  Initially the family rented in Pico Rivera, but then two years later moved to Downey where they were to remain until 1986.  In California Wayne continued to work in finance and accounting, first for a supermarket chain and then for a large dairy.  Then came the move to Sun City, Roseville.  Roseville was near to Barbara and two grandkids, Scott and Megan.

Wayne's interests included Woodworking, Gardening, Investing, Traveling, and Motor homing; he was happiest of all when he was with family.  He and Evelyn traveled to many distant locations including Australia and locations in Europe.  In their Motor Homes they went to Alaska (on the original gravel Alcan Highway) and many destinations across the U.S.

Wayne and Evelyn's time in Sun City was very good even though they only made the move at age 75; Lots of good friends, a founding role in the Pleasant Grove Community Church, the Motor Home Club, The Fitness Center, and frequent visits to friends and family outside of Roseville.

In addition to Evelyn, he is survived by his son and daughter; Steven Dack and Barbara McMurtry.  Grandchildren, Megan Hoffman and Scott McMurtry.   And five great grandchildren; Max and Nathan Hoffman; and Jack, Charlotte, and Lorelei McMurtry.