Miscellaneous Jasper County, Missouri Obituaries 1996

CEMSEARCH - OBITUARY CENTRAL - OBITUARY LINKS PAGE - SURNAME SEARCH UTILITY


First Name:
Last Name:
Paul Cress 

Paul W. Cress, 70, Joplin, died at 5:50 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 15, 1996, at his home after a short illness. 

Mr. Cress was born June 16, 1926, at Monett. He had lived in Joplin most of his life. She was a 1944 graduate of Joplin High School, where he held the rank of lieutenant in the Army ROTC. He owned and operated the former El Rancho Drive-In at 27th and Main streets and owned and operated the former Paul Cress Restaurant at 32nd and Main streets for 20 years. He also owned and operated several coin operated laundries in Joplin until retiring in 1985. 

He was a member of Fellowship Lodge No. 345, AF&AM; Scottish Rite Bodies, Valley of Joplin; Abou Ben Adhem Shrine Temple at Springfield, and Joplin Shrine Club. He was a former member of Joplin Elks Lodge No. 501. He served in the Army Military Police during World War II in the European Theater of Operations. 

He married Marjorie D. Smith on Sept. 3, 1949, at Wichita, Kan. She died June 9, 1986. 

Survivors include a son, Alan Cress, Joplin; three daughters, Cathy Updegraff, Carthage, Susan Petty and Kim Ray, both of Joplin; a brother, Floyd Cress, Joplin; a sister, Alice Pantoja, Joplin; and six grandchildren. 

Services will be at 1 p.m. Wednesday at Parker Mortuary. The Rev. Keith Jackson will officiate. Burial will be in Ozark Memorial Park Cemetery. 

Pallbearers will be Alan Cress, Chad Jimerson, Ralph Updegraff, Floyd Cress, Dennis Spencer, Terry Ensor and Pedro Pantoja. 

Masonic rites will be conducted at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Parker Mortuary, followed by Fellowship Lodge No. 345, AF&AM. 

The family will receive friends after the Masonic rites until 8 p.m. Tuesday at the mortuary. 

Contributions may be made to the Joplin Humane Society. 

Carl Hefley 

Carl E. Hefley, 86, Joplin, died at 10:50 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 14, 1996, at a nursing home in Galena, Kan., after a long illness. 

Mr. Hefley was born Dec. 6, 1910, at Cassville. He lived in Joplin most of his life. He worked at Roaring River State Park in Cassville for several years. He was a mechanic in the motor pool at Fort Crowder, Neosho, during World War II. He was an automobile mechanic at R&S Chevrolet in Joplin for 30 years, retiring in 1975. 

He was a Baptist. He was a member of the A-TA Lodge and Joplin Senior Citizens, both of Joplin. 

He married Fadola Sturgell Painter on Dec. 7, 1940, at Bentonville, Ark. She survives. 

Additional survivors include a son, Jim Hefley, Joplin; a stepson, Thomas Lee Painter, Joplin; two daughters, Sue Bush, Waco, Texas, and Carlene Davidson, Springfield; a sister, Peg Lawson, Exeter; 13 grandchildren; and 14 great-grandchildren. 

Arrangements are pending with Parker Mortuary. 

Bob Rayon 

Robert L. ``Bob'' Rayon, 69, 3025 Minnesota Ave., died at 9:10 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 14, 1996, at Freeman Hospital West after a short illness. 

Mr. Rayon was born Aug. 9, 1927, at Joplin and was a lifetime resident. He worked for R&S Chevrolet in Joplin from 1944 to 1950, for Missouri Steel Castings in Joplin from 1950 to 1987, and for Missouri Precision Castings in Joplin from 1987 until retiring in February 1990. 

He was a Baptist. He was a member of Robert S. Thurman Post No. 13, American Legion, and Earl J. Bruton Post No. 534, Veterans of Foreign Wars. He was an Army Air Corps veteran of World War II. 

He married Charlotte Lee Wallace on Sept. 16, 1945, at Columbus, Kan. She survives. 

Additional survivors include three daughters, Linda Elam, Hurst, Texas, Sharon Virgin and Carol Carr, both of Joplin; three brothers, James Bob Dunn, Galena, Kan., Pete Dunn, Carl Junction, and Troy Hall, Saginaw; a sister, Sylvia Benson, Joplin; seven grandchildren; and one great-grandchild. 

Graveside services will be at 11 a.m. Tuesday at Ozark Memorial Park Cemetery. The Rev. Charlie Davidson will officiate. 

Arrangements are under the direction of Parker Mortuary. 

Military graveside services will be conducted by Robert S. Thurman Post No. 13, American Legion. 

Doris Wilson 

Doris A. DeGraffenreid Wilson, 60, Fort Myers, Fla., a former Joplin resident, died at 4:45 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 14, 1996, at a hospital in Fort Myers after a sudden illness. 

Mrs. Wilson was born Nov. 19, 1936, at Joplin. She moved from Joplin more than 40 years ago. She had lived in the state of New Jersey most her of life until moving to Florida two years ago. She graduated in 1954 from Joplin High School and in 1956 from the former Joplin Junior College. She had worked for the Joplin Public Library. 

Survivors include her husband, Arthur Wilson; a son, Andrew Wilson, Blandon, Pa.; a daughter, Polly O'Brien, Richfield, Conn.; a brother, Martin DeGraffenreid, the state of Alaska; and five grandchildren. 

The body has been cremated. 

Memorial services will be at 2 p.m. Tuesday at Carl Junction (Mo.) United Methodist Church. The Rev. Bob Simon will officiate. 

The family will receive friends from 1 to 2 p.m. Tuesday at the church. 

Loeda Coady 

CARTHAGE, Mo. … Loeda M. Coady, 70, formerly of 1137 Valley St., died at 8:10 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 14, 1996, at a nursing home in Carthage after a long illness. 

Mrs. Coady was born June 24, 1926, at Bowers Mill. She moved to Carthage in 1967 from Fort Belvoir, Va. She worked for Fred's Frozen Foods in Carthage for more than 20 years. She was a member of Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary No. 2590 at Carthage. 

She married John Coady Jr. on June 15, 1946, at Oswego, Kan. He died Feb. 12, 1980. 

Survivors include two sons, Terry Coady, Carthage, and Alan W. Coady, Stratford, Va.; two daughters, Donna Powell, Carthage, and JoAn Hilton, Gladstone; seven grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. 

Graveside services will be at 2 p.m. Tuesday at Park Cemetery, Carthage. Gary Reed, minister, will officiate. 

The family will receive friends from 7 to 8 p.m. today at Ulmer Funeral Home. 

Contributions may be made to American Diabetes Association. 

Tanner Johnson 

MOUNDVILLE, Mo. … Tanner Lee Johnson, 10 months, son of John C. Johnson and Esther A. Durham, Moundville, died at 10:04 a.m. Friday, Dec. 13, 1996, at University of Missouri Children's Hospital at Columbia after a long illness. 

He was born Feb. 7, 1996, in Springfield. 

Tanner, who weighed only 13 ounces at birth, was the smallest person in the world who had angioplasty procedure done on his heart, undergoing seven surgeries during his life. 

Additional survivors include his maternal grandparents, Buddy and Wanda Durham, Rich Hill; maternal great-grandparents, Everett and Wilma Mitchell, Nevada; and a stepsister, Christina Dawn Johnson, Hemet, Calif. 

Services will be at 2 p.m. today at Milster Funeral Home, Nevada. Charles Emthis, minister, will officiate. Burial will be in Newton Burial Park, Nevada. No committal service is planned at the cemetery. 

The family will receive friends from 1 to 2 p.m. today at the funeral home. 

Contributions may be made to Ronald McDonald House, Columbia, in care of the funeral home. 

Gary Simmons 

CARTHAGE, Mo. … Gary L. Simmons, 39, 322 N. Francis St., died at 10:03 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 14, at Barton County Memorial Hospital, Lamar, after a long illness. 

Mr. Simmons was born Nov. 8, 1957, at Carthage and was a lifetime area resident. He worked as a production manager at ConAgra in Carthage for 61 years. 

He was a member of Carthage Jaycees and he formerly refereedthe Carthage Golden Gloves. 

Survivors include a son, Gary L. Simmons II, of the home; a daughter, Brandy Simmons, Carthage; his mother, June Simmons, Carthage; two brothers, Gene Backerman, Lamar, and Jim Backerman, Prairie Grove, Ark.; and five sisters, Judy Norton and Linda Cook, both of Lamar, Judy Silkwood, Braymer, Durcilla Riley, Maumee, Ohio, and Carol Smythia, Stotts City. 

Services will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Ulmer Funeral Home, Carthage. Marti Green, minister, will officiate. Burial will be in Fasken Cemetery, northeast of Carthage. 

Pallbearers will be Scott Roehrs, Ron Roehrs, Mac Backerman, Bo Spurgeon, Marty Garner and Phillip Charbonneau. 

The family will receive friends from 7 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at the funeral home. 

The family will be at the home of his mother, 1217 Ash St. 

Contributions may be made to the National Kidney Foundation, in care of the funeral home. 

Buddy Snorgrass 

LAMAR, Mo. … Nora K. ``Buddy'' Snorgrass, 89, Lamar, died at 4:16 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 15, 1996, at Barton County Memorial Hospital, Lamar, after a short illness. 

Mrs. Snorgrass was born Dec. 6, 1907, at Wellington. She was a longtime Lamar resident. She formerly lived in Kansas City. She was a bookkeeper for Barton County Rural Electric Association for several years and had been a teller at Lamar Bank and Trust for many years. 

She was a member of First Baptist Church of Lamar, where she was a member of Dorcas Sunday School Class. She was a former member of Lamar Rotary Anns. 

She married Larry Snorgrass on Nov. 25, 1926, at Kansas City. He died Dec. 8, 1973. 

Survivors include a sister, Elizabeth Agin, Denver, Colo. 

Services will be at 10 a.m. Tuesday at Lohmeyer-Konantz Funeral Home. The Rev. Drew Hill will officiate. Burial will be in Lake Cemetery, Lamar. 

The family will receive friends from 7 to 8 p.m. today at the funeral home. 

Contributions may be made to the Lamar First Baptist Church building fund, in care of the funeral home. 

Jane Triplett 

NEOSHO, Mo. … Belva Jane Triplett, 47, Neosho, died at 8 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 15, 1996, at her home after a long illness. 

Mrs. Triplett was born June 12, 1949, at Tuba City, Ariz. She was a homemaker. 

She married James Lee Triplett on April 1, 1966, at Neosho. He survives. 

Also surviving are two sons, Danny Lee Triplett, Seneca, and Charles Wesley Triplett, rural Neosho; her father and stepmother, Charles and Nadiene Captain, rural Miami, Okla.; a brother, Charles Daniel Captain, rural Seneca; a twin sister, Velva Jean Kelley, Commerce, Okla.; and four grandchildren. 

Services will be at 2 p.m. Tuesday at Racine (Mo.) Apostolic Church. The Rev. Danny Call and the Rev. Jim Triplett will officiate. Burial will be in Burkhart Cemetery, Racine. 

The family will receive friends from 7 to 8 p.m. today at Campbell-Biddlecome Funeral Home at Seneca. 

Raymond Cleffman 

PITTSBURG, Kan. … Raymond Fredrick ``Cuz'' Cleffman, 85, 1308 N. Rouse St., died at 1:45 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 14, 1996, at Mount Carmel Medical Center after a long illness. He had lived in a nursing home at Frontenac since March 1995. 

Mr. Cleffman was born April 16, 1911, at Cato. He was raised in the Nashville and Iantha, Mo., communities before moving to the Pittsburg area in 1938. He worked as a car man and painter for the Kansas City Southern Railroad for 33 years. He retired in 1975. He also was a farmer. He was a member of the Baptist Church and Railroad Union. 

He married Lola P. Cook on May 7, 1934, at Hannon, Mo. She survives. 

Additional survivors include two sons, Max Nelson Cleffman, Liberal, Mo., and Rex Lee Cleffman, Fort Morgan, Colo.; three daughters, Bernadean Rae Ann McNamara, Arma, Lois Pearl Riley, Pittsburg, and Alice Evelyn Baldwin, rural Mulberry; a sister, Anna Zenser, Joplin, Mo.; 21 grandchildren; and 22 great-grandchildren. 

A son preceded him in death. 

Services will be at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday at Bath-Naylor Funeral Home, Pittsburg. The Rev. Gary Carter will officiate. Burial will be in Shiloh Cemetery, east of Arcadia. 

Friends may call after 9 a.m. today at the funeral home, where the family will receive friends from 7 to 8 p.m. today. 

The family will be at the home of a daughter, Lois Riley, 1002 Kings Highway. 

Contributions may be made to Home Health Care of Pittsburg, in care of the funeral home. 

Viola Smith 

BAXTER SPRINGS, Kan. … Viola Belle ``Vi'' Smith, 63, 320 W. 23rd St., died at 4:39 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 15, 1996, at Freeman Hospital West, Joplin, Mo., after an illness. 

Mrs. Smith was born June 28, 1933, at Weatherby, Mo. She moved to Baxter Springs 28 years ago from St. Joseph, Mo. She was a homemaker. She was a member of First Baptist Church, Baxter Springs. 

She married Fred A. Smith Jr. on Dec. 24, 1954, at Council Bluffs, Iowa. He survives. 

Survivors include a son, Barry L. Smith, Riverton route 1; a daughter, Joyce Payne, rural Fairland, Okla.; a stepbrother, Delbert Kamman, the state of California; a stepsister, Rosalee Wheeler, Lancaster, Mo.; and four grandchildren. 

Services will be at 9 a.m. Tuesday at First Baptist Church, Baxter Springs. The Rev. Fred Dycus and the Rev. Bryan Jones will officiate. Burial will be at 3 p.m. Tuesday at Ashland Cemetery, St. Joseph, Mo. 

Nephews will serve as pallbearers. 

The family will receive friends from 6 to 8 p.m. today at the family home. 

Arrangements are under the direction of Derfelt's Baxter Chapel, Baxter Springs. 

Lois Sturgeon 

BAXTER SPRINGS, Kan. … Lois J. Sturgeon, 47, 3137 Gainswood Drive, died at 1:16 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 15, 1996, at a Galena nursing home after nine years of ill health. 

Mrs. Sturgeon was born Oct. 15, 1949, at Joplin, Mo. She had lived in Baxter Springs all her life. She was a 1967 graduate of Baxter Springs High School, where she was class salutatorian. She was school secretary and records manager for the superintendent of the Baxter Springs schools before retiring nine years ago. She was a Catholic. 

She married Carl Sturgeon on June 16, 1967, at Baxter Springs. He survives. 

Additional survivors include a son, Michael Sturgeon, of the home; two brothers, James Hilton, Baxter Springs, and Richard Hilton, Riverton; a sister, Frances Castleberry, Americus, Ga.; and one grandchild. 

Arrangements are pending with Abbott Funeral Home, Baxter Springs. 

Ferol Jingst 

MIAMI Okla. … Services for Ferol E. Jingst, 87, Miami, who died Saturday, will be at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday at Jim Thomas Funeral Home, Miami. The Rev. William Forrest will officiate. Burial will be in GAR Cemetery, Miami. 

Pallbearers will be Bryan Sparkman, Harold Wilson, Ron Sparkman, David Sparkman, Johnny Sparkman and Jerry Graham. 

Visitation will be from 6 to 7 p.m. today at the funeral home.

Missouri Obituary Links

Marriage Search Engines

GenealogyBuff.com



Search this massive database of obituaries, cemeteries, and death records:


CEMSEARCH - OBITUARY CENTRAL - OBITUARY LINKS PAGE - SURNAME SEARCH UTILITY