Richard Edward Farmer

Richard Edward Farmer, 80, Fort Scott, Kan., died Wednesday, March 10, 2004, at the Beverly Health Care Center in Nevada, Mo. He was born in Devon, Kan., June 24, 1923, the son of Earl E. Farmer and Genevieve Hall Farmer. He graduated from Fulton High School and attended Fort Scott Community College and Pittsburg State University. He married Sylvia Steeley Odell on July 26, 1953, in Osawatomie, Kan. He was a veteran of the United States Army. He was retired as a railroad bridge builder, working for both the Frisco and Burlington Northern Railroads. He was a lifetime member of the Olson-Frary-Burkhart Post No. 1165 V.F.W. He was also a 10-year member of the National Senior Olympics Organization and member of the First United Methodist Church.

Survivors include his wife, Sylvia, Fort Scott, Kan.; a son, Rick Farmer, Owasso, Okla.; three daughters, Gloria Shankel, Fort Scott, Kan., Charlotte Troth, Topeka, Kan., and Shelly Fleeman, Fort Scott, Kan.; and a daughter-in-law, Martha JoAnn Odell. Also surviving are 13 grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; three great-great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; one son, Ron Odell; and two brothers, Raymond and Robert Farmer.

The Rev. David Watson will conduct funeral services at 10 a.m., Friday, March 12, at Cheney Witt Memorial Chapel. Burial with military honors will follow in the U.S. National Cemetery. Memorials are suggested to the Alzheimer's Association and may be left in care of Cheney Witt Memorial Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Fort Scott, KS 66701.