Jene Dewey Hughes

Des Moines

Jene Dewey Hughes, teacher, writer, musician, fly-fishing guru, photographer, carpenter, and true-to-the-definition Renaissance man, died February 13, 2014. The son of James Dewey and Mary Grace Hughes, Jene was born and raised in Des Moines, graduated from Valley High School, and received a BA and MA in music composition from Drake University and an MA in English from Iowa State University. He served in the Navy, after which he spent several years in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia, playing bluegrass banjo, growing tobacco, and brewing beer for the locals, later working as a shipbuilder in Maine before returning to Des Moines, where he and his wife, Kathy, owned and operated the 2nd Avenue Bait House and Fly Shop. He authored the Iowa anglers’ must-have book, The Complete Guide to Iowa Trout Streams; wrote, edited, and photographed for Eastern Fly Fishing, Northwest Fly Fishing, and Southwest Fly Fishing Magazines; and taught classes and individual lessons on all aspects of fly fishing. As a professor of English, he taught writing at both Iowa State University and Des Moines Area Community College. As a musician, Jene offered his talents as a pianist, bassist, and banjoist to various local jazz and bluegrass bands. He is survived by his wife, Kathy Hughes; son, Jesse David Hughes; and grandsons, James David Hughes and Christopher Arthur Hughes. A brief graveside service will be held at Resthaven Cemetery, at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, February 18.