Danny Brawe, 66, of Massena

Celebration of Life Services:  Will be held on Friday, May 24, 2024, at 11:00 a.m. at the United Methodist Church in Massena.  A luncheon will be held at the church immediately following the service.  The Lamb Funeral Home in Massena is in charge of the professional arrangements.  Online condolences may be left to the family at to be www.lambfuneralhomes.com. 

There will be no visitation. 

Memorials:  May be directed to the Massena Fire Department. 

Danny Dean Brawe was born July 23rd, 1957, to loving parents, Harold Elmer and Millree Virginia Brawe, in Greenfield, Iowa. He was welcomed by his older brother, Larry.   Dan passed away peacefully at his home on May 12th, 2024. Dan was raised on his parent’s farm in rural Massena. As a young child, he loved being on the farm and having many animals around him, including his dog Happy and his pony Candy. As a young boy, he played baseball for the Massena Midgets. He especially loved being able to ride his bicycle down the road to his Uncle Art’s house.  While in high school, Dan loved participating in art classes and hanging out with his many friends. During high school, he worked for Murray Appliances. Dan graduated from Cumberland-Massena high school in 1975. He attended Southwestern Community College in Creston after high school.

On May 14, 1975, he married his high school sweetheart, Kathleen Gerlach. They had 2 children together, Kristen Nicole and Tess Alexandra. Over the years, Dan worked several places in Massena, including McLaren Building Supply, McCunn Equipment as a John Deere parts manager, Massena Cooperative as a feed salesman, and P&W Egg Company as their manager.  He could charm anyone and his people skills made him a great salesman, winning him many awards with Land-O-Lakes.

Dan deeply cared about others, loved helping anyone who needed it, and enjoyed being a part of his community. He was a member of the Massena Chamber of Commerce and was a long-time volunteer for the Massena Fire Department. He was always so proud to tell people that he had been Rescue Captain at one time. He had many stories to share and never forgot any of the many rescue calls that he went on. Dan was so proud of his involvement in the development of Southwest Iowa Egg. He spent countless hours bringing this idea to fruition. He met so many great people along the way. He was so proud of this great asset to his community.  

To describe Dan as a character would be an understatement. One of his many sayings was, “If you’re gonna be a cat, you might as well be a wild cat.” Dan loved spending time with his family and friends. You would frequently find him at Horsetraders Inn, Dick’s Bar, and The Middle of Nowhere. In his younger days, he loved to bartend with his life-long friend, Wolfie. He loved to go deer hunting with his buddies and hearing his name, Parts, over the radio and processing deer at Humble’s shop. He usually ended the day’s hunt by singing “What’ll ya have, old time flavor, Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer”, over the radio. He loved to take his girls fishing. Dan loved going to the horse races at Aksarben and Prairie Meadows, even being part-owner of a racehorse at one time. If you knew Dan, you have heard many of his stories, some unbelievable but very true, including his trips to Costa Rica and Grenada. We wish he would have written a book that documented all his life experiences and journeys. He had truly done it all.

After Dan could no longer work, he spent many hours at the shop with his good buddy, Brian and went to Cumberland for coffee. He loved visiting with people, playing cards, including cribbage. He loved watching sports and spent hours watching anything on ESPN, including his beloved Chicago Bears and Oregon Ducks. He loved watching westerns and saw every episode of Gunsmoke at least twice.  Dan loved animals and had many pets over the years, and almost always had a dog by his side.

What he loved most was his family. He loved his girls. He was most proud of his grandson Parker and being called papa. He loved being able to FaceTime with him. He couldn’t wait until Parker was old enough to buy him his first motor bike and baseball glove. He was so excited to meet his second grandson, who is expected in June.

Everyone who knew Dan, knew of his struggles. Even though he had many of them during his life, he was not defined by them. He met so many friends over the years from time spent at Powell Chemical Dependency Center and Zion Recovery services. He always tried to be a friend to everyone, never met a stranger, and never passed judgment. He was always so thankful and appreciative to all of the healthcare staff that cared for him over the years, including the nurses and staff at Cass Health, Atlantic Specialty Care, Caring Acres, and the Massena firemen.

Dan was preceded in death by his parents, Harold and Millree, and so many great friends he had over the years. What a reunion they must have had!

Dan is survived by his daughters Kristen and Tess, son-in-laws Dusty and Matt, grandson Parker and a second grandson expected in June, mother of his girls, Kathleen, brother Larry Brawe and wife Sue, nieces Shana and Jill and their families. His most special granddogs, Nala, Koda, and Charlie.  Also included are his very dear friends, Dave Brahms, Brian Behnken, Mikey Lechner and Dennis Bagshaw.