John Worthington Deer June 20, 1915 - July 19, 2004
 

Post Independent Writer
July 20, 2004
 

John Worthington Deer, 89, of Neodesha, Kan., died Monday, July 19, 2004, at Golden Keys Nursing Home in Neodesha.

John was born June 20, 1915, in Neodesha. His father, John Wesley Deer, was an early-day real estate man. His mother was Rose Park Deer, a teacher in the Neodesha schools in the early 1900s. John was the eldest of four children. He grew up in Neodesha and graduated from Neodesha High School.

In 1939, John married Ruby Fay Kelly in Independence, Kan. She preceded him in death on Sept. 12, 1952. In 1953, he married Ruth Bleakney Kinyon in Neodesha, where they made their home. She preceded him in death on July 22, 1998.

John was a retired farmer. He had been in the grocery and vegetable greenhouse businesses. He liked farming better, so he started farming in 1936. John served on the state board of the Kansas Crop Improvement Association and was vice president.

He was a 50-year member of the Masonic Lodge, Ascension Church, Metro Club and Rotary Club, and was active in forming and serving on the board of the Neodesha Industries, a former member of the school board, and helped start the Neodesha Arts Center.

Survivors include two children, John Michael Deer of Glenwood Springs and Pattie Bailey of Neodesha; grandchildren Kelly Deer of Tulsa, Okla., Sean Wallace and Heath Wallace of Neodesha, Jennifer Brooks of Littleton, Colo., and Heather Leedy of Dyersburg, Tenn.; two stepgrandsons, Tim Harrington of Los Angeles and Chris Harrington of Agoura Hills, Calif.; two stepgranddaughters, Lindley Bailey of San Marcos, Texas, and Geremee Bailey of Decatur, Texas; 12 great-grandchildren; and a sister, Betty Bacon of Neodesha, and a brother, Elmer Deer of Hoyt, Kan.

Funeral services will be at 10 a.m. Thursday, July 22, at Ascension Church in Neodesha, with the Rev. Gerald Eytcheson officiating. Burial will follow in the Neodesha Cemetery under the direction of the Penwell-Gabel Loran Fawcett Chapel in Neodesha.

Visitation hours will be 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday, July 21, with the family receiving friends from 6-8 p.m. at the Penwell-Gabel Loran Fawcett Chapel.

The family has suggested memorials to the Neodesha Arts Association, and contributions may be left at the Penwell-Gabel Loran Fawcett Chapel.The family has suggested memorials to the Neodesha Arts Association, and contributions may be left at the Penwell-Gabel Loran Fawcett Chapel.