Daniel Churchill, 65, of Grinnell, died Thursday, Jan. 13, 2022, at his home south of Grinnell.
A funeral service was held at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 17, at Smith Funeral Home in Grinnell. Interment was in Hazelwood Cemetery in Grinnell. A reception was held in the Heritage Room at Smith Funeral Home.
Memorials may be directed to Grace Community Church and mailed in care of Smith Funeral Home, PO Box 368, Grinnell, IA 50112.
Daniel Joseph Churchill was born the son of Harold and Gwen (Hawkins) Churchill on Apr. 12, 1956, in Des Moines. He was raised on the family farm near Monroe until they moved to a farm south of Grinnell in 1959. He graduated from Grinnell High School with the Class of 1974 and then received his bachelor of arts degree in construction engineering from Iowa State University in 1978. Soon after, he accepted a position in Florida. Daniel returned to Iowa to begin work as an engineer in the Cedar Rapids/Muscatine area while obtaining his master’s of business administration degree from the University of Iowa in 1989. Later on, Daniel worked at Drake University Campus for Weitz Company in Des Moines.
Daniel held a strong faith and attended Lutheran Church of Hope in Des Moines, First Friends Church in Grinnell, and then most recently Grace Community Church also in Grinnell. He loved life on the farm and the companionship of his cats and dog Katie. His most cherished times were being at family gatherings, especially when his great nieces and nephews were there. A sibling rivalry existed since Daniel was an Iowa Hawkeye fan and his brother Dennis was an Iowa State fan, but they both enjoyed rooting for the Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys.
Daniel is survived by his sister Linda Birkenholtz of Monroe; brother Dennis Churchill of Grinnell; niece Sara (Frank) Hawk of St. Charles; nephews Chad (Anna) Birkenholtz of Otley and Matt (Jessica) Birkenholtz of Monroe; and 11 great-nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents and a brother-in-law Thomas Birkenholtz.
