Kent Lavoe Holt, age 89, resident of Uniontown, KS, died Wednesday, October 27, 2021, in Fort Scott, KS. He was born February 6, 1932, in Fort Scott, the son of Howard Curtis and Helen Grace Kent Holt.

He attended Uniontown schools then went to FSCC and played football. Kent enlisted in the U. S. Navy in 1951 and served until 1955.

He married Marilyn Hartman on May 6, 1951, in Redfield Kansas. Together they had 4 children, Kenneth Holt (Nancy), Debra Holt Likely (Tom), Randall Holt (Debra) and Susan Holt Eldridge (Ron); 9 grandchildren; and 24 great grandchildren. He has one Sister Nancy Elofson (Stan).

Kent was preceded in death by his parents and son Kenneth Holt.

Kent’s many accomplishments after his service in the Navy include working as Cashier at Union State Bank starting in 1955, while attending and graduating from Pittsburg State University. He also held the titles of President and Chairman of the Board until retirement in 1994. He was an ongoing Board Member. He was a member of the Kansas Bankers Association’s 50 Year Club.

Kent was a Uniontown advocate, initiating many things in his early years for the community including the Volunteer Fire Department, Uniontown Rural Rental Housing, donating the land and helping build the Uniontown Rodeo Arena, the Boy Scouts for several years, U-235 school board member, and was a member of First Missionary Baptist Church serving as a Trustee. He was also a rancher/farmer. His hobbies included piloting, golf, fishing, woodworking, traveling in the RV and being a Winter Texan for 24 years.

Rev. Marty DeWitt will conduct services at 10:00 AM Monday, November 1^st, at the First Missionary Baptist Church in Uniontown.

Cremation will follow with private family burial in Uniontown Cemetery later. The family will receive friends following the service at the church. Memorials are suggested to the First Missionary Baptist Church and may be left in care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, PO Box 347, 201 S. Main, Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.

Donna Ilene Tyler Fisher went to her heavenly home to be with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and her beloved son, Tommy Dean, on October 27, 2021. She was born to Paul Daniel Tyler and Deloris Roy Tyler-Bolden on December 17, 1941, in Mantey, KS, on the homestead built by her grandfather and in the same room where her mother was birthed. She lived most of her life in the Fort Scott area. 

Despite not finishing high school, Donna went on to gain her LPN license and worked as a night-charge nurse in Girard, KS, while raising four little kids. Her interest in medicine remained throughout her life. She also enjoyed learning about history; anything “old” piqued her interest, collecting old cookbooks, traveling the U.S., watching scary movies, and baking and cooking for her family. She also enjoyed landscape painting and donated some of her work to support the Douglas County AIDS Project. 

Donna married and later divorced Jim Kramer. Together they had four children: Tommy, Steven, Connie, and Shelley. In 1986, she married Raymond Fisher and moved to Moundville, Mo., where they created a home and many fond, family memories.

He preceded her in death, as did her parents, two brothers, Paul Tyler and Larry Bolden, and two sisters, Dorothy Schultz and Bonnie Heaton, and a son, Tommy Kramer, in 2020. 

Survivors include a son, Steven Kramer, Nevada Mo.; daughters Connie Wehmeyer (Mark), Mission Kansas; Shelley Morrison (Bob), Nevada Mo; a daughter-in-law Sandi Kramer, Nolanville TX; a stepdaughter, Kim Fisher Newell (Troy), Denver Co.; nine grandchildren, and 12 great-grandchildren.  A brother, Bill Bolden (Casey), Fort Scott, Ks and a sister, Laura Deen, Georgia, and several nieces and nephews in the Fort Scott area.  

Donna will be laid to rest during a graveside service on Saturday, November 6, 2021, at 11:00 AM. at the Prescott Cemetery, Prescott, KS. Friends and family are invited to attend. In place of flowers, contributions to the American Cancer Society can be left in care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, PO Box 347, 201 S. Main St., Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.

Donna M. Davidson, 77, of Uniontown, Kansas, passed away Sunday evening October 17, 2021, at her home. She was born March 7, 1944, in Fort Scott, Kansas, the daughter of Lee Charles and Allie Ethyl (Peterson) Middleton. She married Clarence Williams November 21, 1998, in Mapleton, Kansas, and he preceded her in death.

Donna is survived by her children, Marvin Davidson, Teresa Varin, Bryan Davidson, and Lisa Enloe; a brother, Kenneth Middleton; a sister, Lois Cooney; and ten grandchildren, Aaron, Cinthyia, Blake, J.C., Resa, Travis, Cody, Ty, Quinten, and Corey.

In addition to her husband Clarence, Donna was also preceded in death by her parents, two sisters, Carol Rourke and Carrie Elbrader, and a brother, David Middleton.

Following cremation, the family will celebrate Donna’s life at a later date. Arrangements are under the direction of the Konantz-Cheney Funeral Home, 15 W. Wall St, Fort Scott, Kansas. Condolences may be submitted to the online guestbook at konantz-cheney.com.

Patsy Ann Vaughn, age 84, a resident of Nevada, Missouri, passed away Wednesday, October 20, 2021, at her home in Nevada.

She was born September 5, 1937, in Ft. Scott, Kansas the daughter of Harold Sipe and Thelma Fitzgerald Sipe.  Patsy spent her childhood on the farm on the banks of Mill Creek near Devon, Kansas.  She attended the Crescent Rural School and went on to graduate from Uniontown High School.

She trained under the direction of Sister Mary Jude (Dietrich).  Following her training with the sisters of Mercy, she moved to Nevada where she worked in Dr. Wray’s office.  She later worked as a lab tech at the Nevada City Hospital and the Bates County Medical Clinic and the Nevada Medical Clinic. She retired from the Nevada Regional Medical Center at the age of 75.

Survivors include her children, Steven Michael Sipe (Becky) of Kincaid, Kansas, Mikki Gardner (Rocky) of Nevada, Douglas Duncan of Nevada, Missouri, Chadd Duncan of Walker, Missouri, Jana Vaughn of  Nevada and D.J. Vaughn also of  Nevada, Darlene Hallford (Dennis) of Eldorado Springs, Missouri and Melissa Smith (Paul), of Nevada; twenty grandchildren and eleven great-grandchildren.  Also surviving is a brother, John Sipe (Marilyn) of Ft. Scott, Kansas, and a sister in law, Joyce Sipe of rural Fort Scott, Kansas.

She was preceded in death by her daughter Lisa Vaughn, a grandson, Tanner Duncan, a sister, Shirley Loubier and a brother, Bob Sipe.

A celebration of life will be held at a later date. Memorials are suggested to the St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital and may be left in of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Ft. Scott, KS 66701.  Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.

Lois LaVerne Swope, age 92, a former resident of Frontenac, Kansas and more recently of Ft. Scott, Kansas, passed away early Tuesday, October 19, 2021, at the home of her daughter in Ft. Scott. She was born May 26, 1929, in Detroit, Michigan, the daughter of Cledies Dray and Ellen Cummings Dray. Lois graduated from the Pittsburg High School with the Class of 1947. She married Eddie L. Swope on June 12, 1949, at Pittsburg. Lois had worked for seventeen years at the Parsons Ammunition Plant. She was a life-long Methodist. She was a past member of the American Legion Auxiliary of Frontenac. She loved to play bingo.

Survivors include her son, Kevin K. Swope and wife, Trish, of Thomasville, Georgia and her daughter, Landia Antonetti and husband, Paul, of Ft. Scott; four grandchildren, Laurie Antonetti of Bartlesville, Oklahoma, Alison Nelson (Jason), of St. Louis, Missouri, Samantha Peterson (Matt), of Thomasville, Georgia and Andrew Swope, of Tallahassee, Florida and six great-grandchildren, Conner Antonetti, Sophia and Seraph Nelson and Isaac, Ivy and Isla Swope. Also surviving are two sisters, Louise and Nancy.

Lois was preceded in death by her husband, Eddie, on July 22, 1996. She was also preceded in death by her sister, Ruby Chubb.

Private burial will take place in the U. S. National Cemetery in Ft. Scott, Kansas. Memorials are suggested to Care to Share and may be left in care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.

Keys to the Kingdom

By Carolyn Tucker

My first horse was named Judy but she didn’t stick around very long after she fell from my good graces when she bit me in the belly. She used her teeth in a harmful way. My next horse was an 11-year-old sorrel gelding named Lucky. He hung around for a long time because he was disciplined and gentle. After a few years, his teeth started doing goofy things and he had to have them floated. Recently, I found myself in the dentist’s chair because a tiny piece of tooth chipped away and I had to have it repaired with some phony enamel stuff. As I scooted out of the chair and stood up, I put my upper and lower teeth together and exclaimed, “It’s too high, it’s too high!” I’m sure that wasn’t the proper description of my teeth catastrophe, but the dentist interpreted it correctly. He directed me to get back in the chair and he grabbed his Dremel and floated my tooth. I walked out with happy chompers because my bite was made right.

One of the jobs of the Holy Spirit is to gently nudge believers in the right direction when there’s a tiny piece of something wrong in our heart. When we tell our heavenly Father, “I really want to be like Jesus,” then the third person of the Godhead goes to work to help make that sincere prayer happen. “God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face Him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world” (1 John 4:16,17 NLT).

I am reading a daily devotional book that I previously read in 2018. The title for August 10 was “A Living Example of Love,” with the beginning scripture of Romans 5:5 NIRV: “And hope will never let us down. God has poured His love into our hearts. He did it through the Holy Spirit, whom He has given to us.” I found one underlined sentence in the devotional that pierced my heart with conviction. There was nothing to do but weep and ask for God’s forgiveness. I made a fresh and stronger commitment to live a life of love.

The Holy Spirit’s flashlight revealed that I had failed to talk in love. My words should always be seasoned with grace and mercy if I want to be a living example of love. There are times when my teeth do not come together to form words of love. The Bible says we are to put a guard on our mouth. “Lord, help me control my tongue; help me be careful about what I say” (Psalm 141:3 NCV). Christians are to talk in love, allowing the tenderness of Jesus to flow through us to others. As long as believers have an intense desire to come up higher in the love department, God is pleased. Our heavenly Father is patient and kind toward us and He expects us to be patient with ourselves and with others.

“Think before you speak” is a phrase we’ve all heard and it comes straight from the Bible. “Do not use harmful words, but only helpful words, the kind that build up and provide what is needed, so that what you say will do good to those who hear you“ (Ephesians 4:29 GNT). The Holy Spirit can smooth off the rough edges of your words if you’ll surrender to Him, listen, and obey when He whispers, “Don‘t say that.“

The Key: If you don’t control your mouth, you probably need to have your teeth floated by the Holy Spirit.

Velma Jean (VJ) Stevens, 97, formerly of Prescott and most recently of Anamosa, Iowa, passed away peacefully on October 7, 2021, in Anamosa. She was born on April 2, 1924, in Stotesbury, Missouri. She lived in Prescott for much of her life but later moved to Rogers, Arkansas, Olathe, and Arlington, Texas. She was strong in faith throughout her life and was a faithful member of the local Catholic church in each community in which she lived. She married William P. Stevens, Jr. on April 20, 1943, and together, they celebrated their 67^th wedding anniversary prior to his death in 2010.

VJ studied art with several notable professionals in the Kansas City area over a fifteen-year period and later taught art lessons in her home in Olathe for many years. She painted hundreds of works of art in oil, pastels, and graphite which were sold, gifted to friends and family, and donated to churches and other organizations. She especially enjoyed doing portraits and religious works of art.

She is survived by her daughter, Beverly Behgam and husband, Roger, of Arlington, Texas; daughter, Patty Himel and husband, A.J., of Round Rock, Texas; son, Paul Stevens and wife, Debbie, of Cascade, Iowa; and daughter, Mary Murray and husband, Ernie, of Leavenworth, Kansas; a sister, Elaine Coffin, of New Orleans, Louisiana; 8 grandchildren, and 7 great grandchildren.

She is preceded in death by her parents, Frank Orr Martin and Corda Walker Martin, along with six brothers and sisters.

Father Yancey Burgess will conduct the Funeral Mass at 10:00 a.m. Thursday, October 14, 2021, at the Mary Queen of Angels Catholic Church under the direction of the Konantz-Cheney Funeral Home.

Burial will be in the Prescott Cemetery

. The family will receive friends Wednesday evening, October 13, 2021, 6-7:00 p.m. at Konantz-Cheney Funeral Home, 15 W. Wall St., Fort Scott, Kansas.

Condolences may be submitted to the online guestbook at konantz-cheney.com.

Patricia Maley Belkham, 77, a resident of Valrico, Florida died September 29, 2021. She was born on January 23, 1944, in Sandusky, Ohio to Eileen Murphy.

Pat is survived by her husband of 31 years Ernie Belkham, three children, Michael Maley (Diane) El Cajon, CA, Marty Maley Spanaway, WA, Kevin Maley (Krista) Pittsboro, NC, and six grandchildren.

Pat was a medical assistant for over 20 years in Sunnyvale before retiring to Valrico, FL in 2013. She was an avid begonia grower, hybridizer, show judge, and illustrator for the America Begonia Society’s publication, “The Begonian”.

Following cremation, interment will take place at a later date in the Belkham plot of Oak Grove cemetery in Fort Scott, Kansas under the direction of the Konantz-Cheney Funeral Home, 15 W. Wall St., Fort Scott, Kansas. Condolences may be submitted to the online guestbook at konantz-cheney.com.