Kyle William Ketelsen

Kyle Ketelsen passed away on Thursday, October 2, 2025, at home.

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Kyle William Ketelsen was born on April 2, 1986, to Robert and Julie (Kendall) Ketelsen and lived on the family farm near Martelle, Iowa. Kyle then lived in and around Cedar Rapids. Around 2012, he inherited the home of his grandfather, William Ketelsen, and moved back to that acreage near Martelle. He graduated from Benton Community High School, received an Associate of Arts degree from Kirkwood, and attended the University of Iowa, majoring in psychology.

He was active in theater and ballet while attending Kirkwood. He enjoyed all forms of dance, including tap, ballet & swing, and did comedy shows, live sword fighting, and jousting at the Amana Renaissance Festival. He was also a part of the live action role playing gaming community. He liked jazz, blues, show tunes, and country music.

Kyle worked construction with his family in his early years, did sets at the Old Creamery theater, drove Cambus for the U of I, and worked maintenance at Lin Haven in Cedar Rapids. In his later years, Kyle really enjoyed helping his dad on the farm, homesteading, and working with animals. He loved building and fixing things, camping, survival skills, and teaching and playing with Liam and Lochlynn. He loved to make people laugh, often by being sarcastically not PC, a quality that will be sincerely missed.

He was known for his great love of dogs and wolves. It brought Kyle great happiness to instill joy in those around him, often doing this through cooking or helping during rough times. His love was shown through acts of service. Kyle met Kara Daly, and they dated in 2006, becoming formal partners again in 2017.

Kyle is survived by his longtime partner Kara, her two children Liam and Lochlynn Daly; his father Robert (Kathy) Ketelsen, his mother Julie (Dwayne) Fry, two stepsisters Karen Daugherty and Diane (Matthew) Recker; and grandmother, Leona Kendall. He was preceded in death by his grandparents William and Betty Ketelsen and Jack Kendall, and uncles Doug Kendall and David Gebel.

In lieu of flowers, memorials to the family may be directed to Goettsch Funeral Home, 306 E. First Street, Anamosa, IA 52205.

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