Joel Lang

Joel Jay Lang, 69, died on Thursday, May 1, 2025, at MercyOne Cedar Falls Medical Center, after a sudden cardiac episode while doing yardwork. He was born on April 1, 1956, in Sumner, Iowa, the son of Carl and Ruth (Mirs) Lang. He graduated from Sumner High School in 1974 and then completed machinist training at Hawkeye Tech. He married Julie Henniges on December 19, 1981, in Sumner. They later divorced and remained good friends. On October 21, 1995, he was united in marriage to Penny Peterson in Fredericksburg. Joel worked as a machinist at Viking Pump for 39 years before his retirement in 2019. He was a member of the Sons of AMVETS and IAM Local 1728. Joel is survived by his wife, Penny of Cedar Falls; children, Aleshia (Mark) Lamos of Hiawatha, Whitney (Joey) Brown of Chicago, IL, Jace and Zayne Lang, both of Cedar Falls; grandsons, Brody and Logan Lamos; sister, Carla (Al) Zell Annandale, MN; brother, John (Jo) Lang of Sumner; and former spouse and good friend, Julie Gesie of Waterloo. He was preceded in death by his parents; in-laws, Judy and Pete Peterson; and sister, Carol Heitland. Joel loved spending time with his family and friends, enjoying appetizers and a drink, and cheering on the Green Bay Packers and Iowa Hawkeyes. He was known for his generosity and derived a lot of joy from giving, whether that was picking up a tab, or lending a hand to anyone with a project, which kept him busy in retirement. He went fishing whenever he could and always looked forward to vacations and fishing trips in Minnesota. Joel enjoyed cooking for his family, whether it was smoking the perfect meats, frying fish, or making breakfast on his Blackstone. He was a wonderful grandfather and could often be found in the stands watching his grandsons in swim meets, taking notes on their split times. Visitation 4:00-7:00 p.m. Monday, May 5th at Richardson Funeral Service. Funeral services will be 11:00 a.m. Tuesday, May 6, 2025, at Richardson Funeral Service in Cedar Falls with a luncheon following at the Cedar Falls AMVETS Post #49. Memorials may be directed to the family.

Joel Lang

April 1, 1956 - May 1, 2025