Obituary – Jeffery Wayne Mercer
Jeffery Wayne Mercer was born in Mount Ayr, Iowa on July 15, 1975, to Gary and Kathy Mercer. Growing up he spent much of his time on his grandfather’s farm as his right-hand man. He graduated from Mount Ayr High School in 1994.
Jeff was in the National Guard. He was a lifelong trucker and also worked as an EMT. Jeff worked at Mount Ayr Products for several years before moving to the Jefferson, Iowa area. His last trucking job was for Sully’s Transport out of Sully, Iowa.
On July 18, 2022, he married Samantha Knosp. He enjoyed NASCAR Racing and spent a lot of Saturdays at the Boone racetrack.
Jeff was an avid outdoors man. He enjoyed four wheeling and hunting. He especially enjoyed hunting coyotes and deer. He made numerous trips to South Dakota to hunt prairie dogs. He even went to Oklahoma to hunt wild hogs.
He received the American Legion Appreciation Award for pulling a man out of his burning pickup. He was very generous with his time and always willing to lend a helping hand to anyone who needed it.
Jeff passed away on August 16, 2026. He was preceded in death by his mother Kathy Garner; grandparents Cecil and Rosalee Mercer and Don and Connie Huff; niece Paige Oldenkamp; great nephews Rhett and Tucker Haffner.
Jeff is survived by his wife Samantha Knosp of Grand Junction, Iowa; father Gary Mercer (Fran) of Eagleville, Missouri; stepdaughter Lacey (David) Clapp of Jefferson, Iowa; grandson Destin Clapp of Jefferson, Iowa; sisters Miranda (Scott) Sleep of Prescott, Iowa and Sarah (Justin) Kernen of Bedford, Iowa; nieces Sierra (Matt) Haley, Dakota Sleep (Shannon) and McKenna Harmon (Cooper); nephew Quenten (April) Oldenkamp; several great nieces and nephews; close friend Darrin of Boone, Iowa; and other relative and friends.
A celebration of life was held at 1 p.m. on Sunday, August 23, 2026, at the Adair Community Center in Adair, Iowa. Light refreshments were served. A memorial fund has been established in his name to be decided by the family. Armstrong Funeral Home assisted the family with Jeff’s arrangements.
