Richard E. Leet

Richard Eugene Leet, 88, of Mason City, died peacefully February 23, 2025, at Heritage Care Center in Mason City. Services are currently pending. Inurnment will be held in Grandview Cemetery, Fayette, IA. Memorials may be directed to First United Methodist Church or the MacNider Art Museum. 

Richard was born on September 11, 1936, in Waterloo, Iowa, to Gladys and Arthur Leet. Leet attended and graduated from Waterloo East High School followed by undergraduate and graduate work at Iowa State Teachers College, including some summer graduate coursework at University of Iowa. He taught high school art in Oelwein after getting his master’s degree. While at Iowa State Teachers College, Leet met Kay Whitney and they married June 26, 1960, in Garner. In 1965, Leet became founding director of the Charles H. MacNider Art Museum in Mason City, and he and Kay settled there, where they lived and eventually celebrated 61 years of marriage. Leet retired in September of 2001.

Leet had many varied hobbies and interests over the years. He remembered as a youth selling concessions at a nearby baseball stadium which maybe sparked his interest in watching baseball and other sports for many years to come such as the Minnesota Twins and the Phoenix Suns. He enjoyed hunting, fishing, golfing, and in later years, playing Cribbage. Leet and his wife were active members of First United Methodist Church since their arrival to Mason City in 1965. A resident of Iowa for all of his lifetime, Arizona was also significant to Leet as he and Kay spent 14 winters in Gold Canyon. Gardening, singing in church choir (O Holy Night and How Great Thou Art a couple of his favorites), participating in Rotary, traveling, and observing nature and the sky were among his many interests, but Leet’s main passion was his artwork. From early cartoons and sketches to oil paintings, pastels, and especially watercolors, Leet loved to look at life with brush in hand.

His artwork was exhibited in numerous museums or venues, especially across Iowa with his last exhibit at Clear Lake Arts Center in January of 2022. In addition, Leet had works selected for competitive, group, and invitational shows as well as had works purchased and added to the art collections of individuals and businesses. Leet maintained a studio where he could create, store, display, and sell his artwork, and he participated yearly in a few Iowa art festivals and even an Arizona one once in a while. Leet was part of the Iowa Museum Association, Midwest Museum Association, American Association of Museums as well as the Iowa Watercolor Society, Iowa Designer Crafts Association and the local Art on the Plaza.

Left to celebrate his life, faith, work, and artwork are two adult children: Kimberly (Jonathan) Funkhouser, and Todd (Jennifer) Leet; six grandchildren: Joanna (Gabriel) Esser, Rachel (Noah) Schultz, Jeremiah Funkhouser, Mara (Noah) Leet-Fredricks, Raina Leet, and Landen Leet; and great grandson Isaiah Esser. Also, two brothers, Don Leet and Duane Leet; a brother-in-law Michael Nuehring; and two nieces, Amanda (Andrew) Pappas and Whitney Nuehring. 

Leet was preceded in death by his parents, Gladys and Arthur Leet, his wife Kay Leet, and sister-in-law Barbara Nuehring.