Obituary of Jeffrey Dean Phelps

Jeffrey Dean Phelps, age 63, of Columbus, Ohio, died Friday, April 26, 2024, in Iowa City following a hard-fought battle with three different cancers. A graveside service will take place at 11:00 a.m., Wednesday, May 1, 2024, at Memory Gardens Cemetery in Iowa City. Memorial contributions can be directed to Iowa City Hospice or to the Iowa City Church of the Nazarene Food Bank.

Jeff was born December 24, 1960, in Columbus, Mississippi. After serving in the United States Army from 1978-1980, Jeff moved to Iowa City where he lived until 1987 when he moved to Columbus, Ohio. He worked as a nuclear pharmacy technician, filling more than 1,000,000 vials of radioactive material that would be used for medical scans and imaging over the course of his career. Jeff loved fishing and his Iowa Hawkeyes almost as much as he loved his family.

He was an amazing uncle, a good brother, a devoted son to his mother, as well as a devout Christian. Jeff will be missed dearly by those lucky enough to have known him.

His family includes his siblings, Sandy (Berny) Heisdorffer, Nora Phelps, Kathy Garringer, Danny Phelps, and Charles Phelps; nieces and nephews, Erika, John, Benjamin, Rachel, Kirsten, Dillion, Chris, Coltt, and Samantha; as well as a host of extended family and friends.

He was preceded in death by his mother, Phyllis Phelps, and by his brother, Robert Phelps.