Meet your neighbors: Tyler Frank and Kayla Leichty

Meet Tyler Frank and Kayla Leichty, Winfield’s newest residents. They recently moved into the former Ryan VanAuken home along with their furry friend Kenai, a 3-year-old female Rottweiler.

Tyler was born in Minot, North Dakota, and moved to Iowa in 2012 because his Dad had retired from the military and wanted to be closer to family. His parents are Bret and Heather Frank of Riverside, Iowa.

Tyler has three siblings, Brandon Vequam, who lives in Lone Tree, Iowa, and Skyla Frank and Bentley Frank, both residents of Riverside. Tyler is a 2015 graduate of Highland High School and currently works for a company called Enersys as a Field Service Representative (FSR). Prior to his current job, Tyler worked at Wilkinson Recast Inc. in Riverside pouring concrete.

Kayla was born in Iowa City, and raised both there and in Wayland. Her parents are Kurt and Beth Leichty, residents of Wayland. Kayla also has three siblings: Taylor Classon (Leichty) of Marion, and Kasen and Morgan Leichty, both of Wayland.

Kayla is a 2017 graduate of WACO High School.

“I went to the University of Iowa for two years, then transferred to Mount Mercy University where I graduated with my Bachelor of Science in Nursing. (BSN),” she said.

Kayla currently works at the University of Iowa Health Care.

Though Kayla has lived her whole life in Iowa, Tyler is more of a traveler.

“I’ve lived in North Dakota, Missouri, and Alaska before settling in Iowa,” said Tyler.

“We met shortly after high school and reconnected a couple years ago on social media and began dating in December 2024,” explained Kayla when asked how they met.

“I bought my house on April 9 and moved here because it is a nice and quiet town,” explained Tyler. Kayla added, “When Tyler and I viewed the house, we felt like it was the perfect fit for us. I used to live in a small town and enjoyed the community. It’s a nice change from previously living in the busy cities of Iowa City and Cedar Rapids.”

Kayla’s list of previous employment includes Halcyon House, Washington County Hospital, Mercy in Cedar Rapids and St. Luke’s as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA)/Patient Care Technician (PCT).

“I started my nursing career in Emergency Room at St. Luke’s Hospital,” she said. “I now work at the U of I in the Procedure Suite.”

The procedure suite refers to the place where a variety of medical procedures occur, often involving sedation or anesthesia. It is similar to an operating room, but maybe more focused on specific procedures such as biopsies or lumbar punctures.

When asked what they feel are the pros and cons of living in small town USA, Tyler replied, “The people are nice and the town is quiet.” Kayla answered, “The pros of living are the neighbors know each other.” If they feel there are any cons, none were mentioned.

To add to his world travels, Tyler has been to both North and South Dakota, Canada, Colorado, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Texas and Mexico.

Kayla reported, “I’ve only traveled a few places, but plan to travel more. I have been to Missouri, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Florida, Texas, Washington D.C., Punta Cana [Dominican Republic] and Mexico.” (Did she say “Only?)

Tyler lists his hobbies as hunting and fishing. Kayla enjoys spending time with friends and family, adding, “I also enjoy Cricuting, which is a smart cutting machine (Cricut) that allows you to specialty cut items with certain materials for at-home projects.”

Kayla said that her advice to young people is to “find a mentor and later be a mentor. Mentors help you go from novice to expert.”

We welcome Kayla and Tyler to Winfield and look forward to having them as part of our community. Thank you for sharing your story with us.

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