Claudia Jolene "CJ" Kaiser

Claudia Jolene 'CJ' Kaiser, 58, of Ames, IA passed away unexpectedly November 7, 2025 where she got to go to heaven and meet her Savior. A gathering of friends and family will be 4-6:00 p.m. Thursday, November 20, 2025, at Grandon Funeral and cremation Care, 414 Lincoln Way, Ames, Iowa with a brief service to follow.

Claudia was born on September 24, 1967, the youngest daughter to Edward and Mary (Breiner) Cox. She was raised in Ames and graduated from Ames High School in 1986. After high school she went on to ISU where she began her education to become a teacher. While at ISU she realized teaching wasn't for her but her true calling was nursing. She obtained her LPN from DMACC in 1988. For the better part of her working life Claudia stayed at home with her children raising them. After all her children were out of the house she decided it was time to finish what she originally started and go back to school. She again attended DMACC to obtain her nursing degree in 2016. After long awaited years she sat boards, passed, and became an RN. While she had a few nursing jobs throughout the years, after graduation she landed her dream nursing job, hospice. She truly felt a calling for Hospice after walking alongside her brother, Skip, and his journey with cancer, her mother with Alzheimer's and her sister, Vicki.

Claudia met John in Ames at ISU. They later married in 1989.. To which they had 3 children; Jacob, Rebekah and Margaret. They divorced later in life.

In 2017 Claudia received a diagnosis of Metastatic Breast Cancer. While this kind of diagnosis would slow people, it only did the opposite for Claudia. She powered through. She continued to work while receiving treatment, having surgeries, a broken foot and countless other issues that come along with that kind of diagnosis. This is a true testament to what kind of person Claudia was. Even if she was having a bad day, a lot of the time you wouldn't have known. While with MBC you are never truly in remission, she was as close as could be. She was thriving.

Claudia loved many things in life but a few of her favorites were sewing/crafting, writing and receiving letters, cheering for the Chiefs and having a clean and tidy home. Oh, and thrift store shopping. She loved finding a bargain or hunting for a specific item. On any given day you could find Claudia at Goodwill, Salvation Army or Overflow. She would even rope her best friend, Sheila, into going with her. But out of all her favorite things to do, spending time with her grandbabies was her ultimate favorite. Being a Grammy/MiMi to 7 little people was what kept her going everyday. What they say about being a grandparent rang true for her. "They get to do life over again with a different set of eyes"

Claudia is survived by her 3 children: Jacob (Elise) Kaiser of Edgewood, IA, Rebekah (Nathan) Niehus of Lawton, IA, and Margaret (Wyatt Beaman) Kaiser of Jefferson, IA. Her grandbabies: Emmerson, Josephine, Aaron, Ian and baby #5 Kaiser and Brooks, Baylor and Brystol Niehus. She is also survived by her best friends: Sheila Bright and Danae Lundt.

She was preceded in death by her two angel babies, her parents; Ed and Mary, her brother Skip, sister Vicki and her Father in law whom she held a special relationship with, Greg Kaiser

When you go thrift store shopping or wear Cyclone or Chiefs colors- Think of her and talk about her to keep her memory alive for us.

Claudia loved stopping at little libraries around town to see if there were any new fun books to snag to read. In lieu of flowers we are asking for book donations as the family is going to make and set up 3 free little libraries in the towns that her children reside in. Please contact the family for any donations.

Online condolences may be directed to www.grandonfuneralandcremationcare.com