Walter Jack Iseman

WALTER JACK ISEMAN, 93, died Wednesday Nov 26 of natural causes. 

He was born February 29, 1932 in Apollo County Pennsylvania, the son of Walter John Iseman and Ethel Alverda Fox. 

As a boy he went to a one room school for eight years. As a teen he traveled 8 miles, some on foot, to Ford City High School. Like many of his graduating class, he then spent a year working in a factory. But the need to create drove Walt to be the first member of his family to go to college. He graduated from Penn State in 1955 with a degree in engineering.

 After graduation, he served in the USAF as an aircraft maintenance officer.

While in college, he met the love of his life, Ruby Marie Beck at a square dance. He married Ruby on May 30, 1956. They relocated to Rockford, Ill. when he was discharged in 1959 and began working for Sundstand, corp. 

A licensed professional engineer, he worked for Sundstrand for 33 years. He designed hydraulic systems for airplanes and even the space shuttle. This work resulted in eight patents. He retired in 1992. 

In 1968, Walt moved his new family to a small farm. He farmed about 20 acres of land outside Monroe Center, IL where they lived for 34 years. His creative impulse led him to upcycle old farm equipment long before it became fashionable. He enjoyed working with his hands building furniture such as cabinets, tables, and desks. Walt designed and built his own house on the farm, as well as a travel trailer that they pulled on trips around the United States.

After their children were grown, Walt and Ruby resumed square dancing. He and Ruby were active members of the Collide-O-Scopes Square Dance Club for many years. They participated in both local dances, and at dances in locations as far away as Australia. 

An avid gardener, he continued this hobby after settling in the Wesley Willows retirement community. In recent years he was often found in their garden plot in summer. 

He is survived by his wife Ruby and sister Ruth Saur, and children Cynthia Archer, Bethany Iseman, Thomas Iseman, and Janice Smith and four grandchildren Alice Archer, Iris Jones, Matt Smith and Phillip Smith

A visitation will take place on Friday, January 16, 2026, from 11:00 a.m. until the Celebration of Life at 1:00 p.m. at Fitzgerald Funeral Home & Crematory, Riverside Chapel, 3910 N. Rockton Avenue, Rockford IL, 61103. To share memories and condolences online, please visit, www.fitzgeraldfh.com.