Michael Thomas Boyle

Michael Thomas Boyle, 68, of Tipton, Iowa, died October 15, 2025, at Cedar Manor Nursing Home in Tipton. Born June 24, 1957, in Riceville, Iowa, he was the son of Patrick Henry Boyle and Hazel Margaret (Marr) Boyle. Raised on his family’s Century Farm with siblings Ann, Pat, Carol, Bill, Janice, and Tom, he lived a rural life and cherished visits with his grandparents, who lived across the road.

A 1975 graduate of Cresco High School, Mike earned an Associate of Applied Science in Agricultural Business from North Iowa Area Community College in 1985 and a Bachelor of Arts from Buena Vista University in 1987. He then spent more than three decades with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development division as a real estate Appraisal Specialist.

Mike was a member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Tipton and gave generously of his time. He served on the boards of the Cedar County Historical Society, the Pioneer Cemetery Commission, and the Cedar County Extension Council, and held memberships in the Tipton Lions Club, the Knights of Columbus, the Master Gardener program, the Cedar County Freedom Rock Committee, and Iowa Barn Tours, among many other committees and projects too numerous to list.

On August 24, 1991, he married Teresa “Terry” JoAnn Watznauer of Fort Madison. They made their home in Tipton in 2003 and raised daughter Caitlin and son Colin. Mike welcomed his first grandson, Rhett, to the Boyle family in 2015.

Between 1999 and 2003, Mike worked at Denny’s Greenhouse in Wever to satisfy his passion for gardening and save for a genealogy trip to Germany in 2000, during which he visited his fourth cousin, Elmar Knippling. In 2024, Mike, Colin, and brother Pat toured Ireland’s rolling countryside, deepening their connection to their Boyle heritage.

As a passionate gardener, he helped establish Tipton’s community garden, planted flowers at the soldiers’ monument by the public library, and maintained the floral beds for the Tipton Country Club and St. Mary’s Church. To share his love of horticulture, he commissioned a custom metal petunia tree, welded by his brother Bill, and adorned it with cascading flowers for the enjoyment of neighbors and friends.

For 31 years, Mike quietly battled liver disease without complaint, demonstrating resilience and dignity even in his final months.

Visitation will be Sunday, October 19, 2025, from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. at Fry Funeral Home in Tipton. A Funeral Mass will be Monday, October 20, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Tipton, followed by a luncheon at St. Mary’s Hall. Burial will take place at Calvary Cemetery in Elma, Iowa. Online condolences and service details are available at www.fryfuneralhome.com.

He is survived by his wife, Teresa “Terry” JoAnn Boyle; daughter Caitlin Boyle; son Colin Boyle; grandson Rhett Boyle; siblings Ann Sullivan, Patrick C. Boyle, Carol Praska, William “Bill” Boyle, Janice Leverson, and Thomas “Tom” Boyle. He was preceded in death by his parents, Patrick Henry Boyle and Hazel Margaret Boyle.