11/28/2023
Joe Dwigans, age 102, was born in October 13, 1921 in Stuart, Iowa, the son of Irvin and Gladys Dwigans. He married Betty Rae Grewell in Knoxville, Iowa in 1948.
Joe grew up in the Knoxville area, helping his folks raise rabbits, working a paper route, and participating in 4-H. He was proud to have the first balloon tire bicycle in Knoxville. Joe graduated from Knoxville High School in 1939. After high school, he attended the University of Iowa for a year before returning to help his parents with the Dwigans Dairy, a rapidly growing business in Knoxville.
Later he helped his parents with their popular cafe and ice cream store in Knoxville, the Ra-O-La. He helped build out the business far beyond Knoxville, installing ice cream freezers in the surrounding communities and then restocking them weekly in his panel delivery truck. The Ra-O-La ice cream booth every year at the Iowa State Fair was a highlight.
In December 1942 Joe joined the Navy and in May 1943 began officer indoctrination and flight training to become a Navy pilot. He primarily flew the Curtiss SB2C Helldiver, logging hundreds of hours of flight time until the end of the war. From 1950 to 1958 Joe was in the active Navy Reserves at Naval Air Station Dallas, flying various aircraft from the F4U Corsair to the first Navy jets, the McDonnell FH-1 Phantom and the Grumman F9F Panther. He retired from military service in 1971.
Joe loved to tell stories about his life as a naval aviator and his shipmates. There were many, but his favorites were circling the Statue of Liberty, flying low down Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington as part of a military parade, and several close calls. Joe originally got the flying bug after a ride in an autogyro as a kid.
Besides his postwar side job in the Navy, Joe also had a successful career as a Certified Public Accountant and Tax Manager. After graduating from the University of Oklahoma in 1953 with a degree in accounting and an MBA, Joe joined Arthur Andersen in Dallas, Texas.
He then specialized in tax practice and worked in several gas and electric utilities in Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas City, Missouri, before finishing his tax career in 1989 at Kansas City Power & Light as the Tax Manager and Assistant Treasurer.
In his last two positions in Kansas City, he was part of the development of a helium plant in Liberal, Kansas, and a nuclear plant in Burlington, Kansas. From 1989 to 2013 Joe was president of a real estate business in Olathe that he began with a Navy flying buddy and his family.
While in Kansas City Joe was actively involved in his community. This included MENSA, YMCA, CPA societies, Tax Executive Institute, Country Club Homes Association, Oklahoma University Alumni Association, Missouri and Kansas Chamber of Commerce as well as the DeSoto Chamber of Commerce and the Masonic Lodge.
He was also active in several military organizations, still attending meetings and events with his many friends in his final months: Navy League, MOWW, Reserve Officers Association, Naval Reserve Association, Association of Naval Aviation, Fleet Reserve Association, American Legion, and VFW. Additionally, he was active in the T & C Investment Club.
For many years Joe and Betty had a camper and traveled widely. Travel also included trips to Alaska, Hawaii, Japan, New Zealand, and Europe. He even caught a glimpse of modern naval aviation on an aircraft carrier Tiger cruise with his son from Hong Kong to Japan in 1995. He later participated in an Honor Flight to Washington.
Joe was humble, generous, and kind, and above all, he deeply enjoyed and was very proud of his family. He was preceded in death by his son, John, his brother and sister, Dick and Marilyn, and his granddaughter, Anna.
He leaves behind his wife of 75 years, Betty; his children Cathy (Ray), JoAnn Lesh (Dave), Cindy (AJ) and Dean (Fumiko); his grandchildren Joey Lesh, Jeffrey Lesh, Daniel Lesh, Allison 
Grammer, Ken Dwigans and Mary Dwigans; and his great-grandchildren Henry, Jack, Nina, Wesley, Layla, Leo, Tadzio, Iver, Pawel, Annie, and Maggie Jo. They are his true legacy.
Visitation is on December 7, 5:00-7:00 pm at Bybee & Davis Funeral Home, Knoxville, IA. Graveside services will be at Graceland Cemetery, Knoxville, on December 8, 11:00 am. Instead of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to: the Knoxville Panther Scholarship Foundation (kpsfoundation.org – include a note to add to “Dwigans Family Endowed Scholarship”) or the Knoxville Community Foundation (knoxvilleheritage.org).
Joe Dwigans Navy career article: https://davidegrogan.com/2023/02/lcdr-joe-dwigans-u-s-navy-from-an-iowa-dairy-farm-to-flying-navy-helldivers/
Joe Dwigans Navy career video: https://www.patriotfeatures.org/portfolio/joe-dwigans/