Kent Joel Shultz

Kent Joel Shultz, 61, of Osage, Iowa, passed away on Thursday, January 29, 2026.

A visitation is planned for 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, February 3, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Osage, Iowa. Rosary services will be held at 3:30 p.m. on February 3. The funeral mass will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, February 4, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church. Burial will immediately follow Mass and will take place at Sacred Heart Cemetery in Osage.

Kent was born on September 3, 1964, in Charles City, Iowa, to Annette (Burgess) and Harold Shultz. Kent was raised in Greene, Iowa, with his younger brother Craig, where they were raised by Annette and a plethora of support after Harold was severely injured in a car accident when Kent was four years old. Throughout his childhood, Kent developed a passion for sports, especially basketball, as well as fishing and hunting. With the support of his Uncle Jack and many friends, he grew into an avid outdoorsman for his entire life. Annette made sure that each of her boys had everything they needed, and she took pride in making sure each of them got to pursue and hone their respective passions and interests growing up. She also made sure to take them on weekend trips to Knoxville, Iowa, to the VA nursing home to visit Harold as often as possible, so their family could be together.

Kent attended college at Iowa State University, graduating in December 1987 with a Bachelor of Science in History, Secondary Education, and an all-Social Studies and coaching endorsement for grades 7-12. Kent began his teaching career at Kee High in Lansing, Iowa, in the fall of 1988. While teaching at Kee, he coached football, track and field, and basketball.

While living in Lansing, Kent met and later began dating the love of his life, Sarah Otteson, in October of 1991. On their first date, Sarah went to watch him coach the high school football team, and while watching, her hot chocolate froze within minutes due to the cold. After the game, Kent tried to make them a pizza and promptly burned it, but Sarah was hooked. Shortly after they began dating, Sarah introduced Kent to her two children, Kaitlyn and Nolan. The four of them soon became a family, and Kent loved those three more than anything.

After proposing to Sarah with his favorite fishing reel in 1994, they were married in Lansing on April 29, 1995. A year later, they added another daughter, Mollie, and 18 months later, another son, Isaac. Sarah and their four kids were his heart and soul, and he was always a steady source of wisdom, a shoulder to cry on, and a never-ending support for the five of them. He spent countless hours learning how to braid the girls’ hair, asking them about their passions, rebounding basketballs, teaching his kids how to properly shoot a basketball, playing catch and hitting ground balls in the lot next to the house, learning the ins and outs of wrestling, and so much more. He and Sarah always did their best to make sure the kids had someone at their activities, and they spent countless hours in the car, often splitting the duties to make sure all four kids had a parent there.

Kent began teaching at Rudd-Rockford-Marble Rock in 1994 after the family moved back to the area he grew up in, ultimately settling in Osage in 1995. A beloved junior high and 12th-grade history, geography, and government teacher, Kent was a steadying force for his students, showing them compassion, empathy, and respect, all while instilling lifelong lessons in them. At RRMR, he coached the varsity girls' basketball team to great success until resigning so he could support his own kids in their activities. Once his kids’ activities slowed down as they got older, he went back to coaching junior varsity girls’ basketball, track, and later, the girls' varsity softball team. Kent was beloved by both his students and athletes.

One of Kent’s greatest joys in life was becoming Papa to his five beloved grandchildren. Just as he did with his own kids, he did everything he could to spend time with them, learning about their interests, playing countless games, listening to stories, jokes, invention ideas, and traveling to watch them in activities. He was so proud to be their Papa, and nothing brought him more joy.

An avid outdoorsman, Kent enjoyed taking his boat out to a quiet place to cast a line, hunting with his lifelong friends, pulling off onto random gravel roads just because he had to see if there was a good marsh out there, biking, birdwatching, gardening, pumpkin farming, selling produce at the farmer’s market, and learning about different flowers and plants. He also loved cheering for his beloved Iowa State Cyclones and the Minnesota Twins and Vikings.

He was preceded in death by his father, Harold, his parents-in-law, Ernie and Violet Otteson and Sue Glissendorf, as well as all of his aunts and uncles and several cousins.

Kent is survived by his wife of almost 31 years, Sarah; their children and grandchildren, Kaitlyn (Jeff) and their four children, Jonah, Lucy, Charlie, and Hank; Nolan (Michelle) and their daughter, Stevie; Mollie (Paul), and Isaac. He is also survived by his mother, Annette, his brother, Craig (Kelly), and family friends Mary Lou and Joni Murphy, who helped Annette raise Kent and Craig, as well as many nieces, nephews, cousins, extended family members, and friends. The family would like to sincerely thank the Austin Police and Fire Departments, the Minnesota State Patrol, as well as the Mayo Clinic nurses and doctors, all of whom worked so hard to save him. They would also like to thank the two men who stopped to pull Kent and Sarah from the car.

Monetary donations will be used for a scholarship fund for RRMR Community Schools.