TOMPKINS OBITUARIES, Henry County, Missouri ==================================================================== TOMPKINS, Esther Elizabeth NEUENSCHWANDER 1912 - 1993 Mrs. Esther E. Tompkins, 81, Deepwater, died Thursday, November 11, 1993 at Golden Valley Hospital - Esther Elizabeth Tompkins was born June 12, 1912 to Leon and Hedwig Esslinger Neuenschwander in St. Clair County, Mo. Her early years were spent in the Lowry City and Deepwater areas where she attended the Valley Center Grade School and graduated from the Lowry City High School. After attending Missouri University and Teacher's College at Warrensburg, she taught for 1 1/2 years at the cold Springs School near Leeton. It was at this small rural school that she net Howard Tompkins who had gallantly offered to remove some fallen branches from the school house. they were married on February 14, 1935, Valentine's Day, in her folks home near Deepwater. To this union were born two children, Rebecca, who died in infancy, and Robert Neill of Warrensburg. Howard preceded Esther in death by exactly two weeks. Esther and Howard lived in Amarillo, Texas for two years before returning to the Lowry City/Deepwater area where they built and operated the Valley Center Market for many years. After 20 years, Esther returned to college and completed her BS in Education from CMSU in Warrensburg. After teaching three years at Diamond Point School near Brownington, she went to the Lowry City School District where she completed an additional 21 years of elementary teaching, retiring in 1978. Esther had many interests but her greatest love was Howard. She was his best friend and constant companion. Their relationship was founded in lifelong love for each other. Her other real love was for her church. she was an active member of the Valley Center United Church of Christ where she served as the church organist for 25 years. She was also active in the Ladies Aid Organization as well as the West Central Missouri Genealogical Society. Other interests included quilting and gardening. Summer time around the Tompkins' household always brought forth beautiful flower arrangements. Esther is survived by a son, Robert of Warrensburg; two granddaughters, Kyla Creollo of Grove, Oklahoma, and Kristle of Sedalia; two great granddaughters, Kaycie and Kalley of Grove, Ok; a sister, Hilda Laughman of West Covina, Ca.; several nephews and nieces, other relatives and friends. funeral services were at 2 p.m., Sunday, November 14, 1993 at Valley Center United Church of Christ, with Rev. Dane Sommers officiating. Music was by Susan Hilty, Donna Hughes, Kathy Conrad and Dara McClure. Pallbearers were Melvin Haverland, Alan Haverland, Bob Neuenschwander, Clarence Neuenschwander, Amos Neuenschwander, Art Neuenschwander. Honorary pallbearers were Ernie Smith, Franklin Rapp, Everett Poynter, Epperson Jerome, Willis Laughman, Alfred Neuenschhwander and Charles Neuenschwander. Burial was in the Valley Center Cemetery, under direction of Sheldon-Goodrich Funeral Home. TOMPKINS, Howard Earl 1912 - 1993 Howard E. Tompkins, 81, of Deepwater, died Thursday, October 28, 1993 at Research Medical Center in Kansas City. - Howard Earl Tompkins was born June 27, 1912 to David and Mary Tompkins near Leeton. His early years were spent in the Leeton area where he attended the Cold Springs Rural School. Howard married Esther Neuenschwander on February 14, 1935, Valentine's Day, in her folks home near Deepwater. To this union were born two children, Rebecca, who died in infancy, and Robert Neill of Warrensburg. Howard and Esther lived in Amarillo, Texas for two years before returning to Lowry City/Deepwater area. he held various forms of employment including building and operating the Valley Center Market for several years. He also was a school bus driver for the Lowry City School District for 21 years. The love of Howard's life was his wife, Esther. She was more than a wife to him. She was his best friend and constant companion. Theirs was truly a loving relationship. Howard was a well-known man. He had a wonderful sense of humor, and seldom met a stranger. He was an avid outdoorsman and spent the greater part of his life hunting or with fine horses. But his greatest love was running his foxhounds. He had no greater enjoyment than to sit around the campfire, listen to the hounds run, and visit with his hunting buddies. He will be truly missed by his family and many friends. Howard is survived by his wife, Esther of the home; a son, Robert of Warrensburg; two granddaughters, Kyla Creollo of Joplin and Kristie of Sedalia; two great- granddaughters, Kaycie and Kalley of Joplin; three sisters, Edith Jerome of Blairstown, Gladys Poynter of Morgantown, Indiana and Doris Jessup of Butler; several nephews and nieces, other relatives and friends. Funeral services were at 2 p.m., Sunday, October 31, at Valley Center United Church of Christ, with Rev. Dane Sommer officiating. Music was by Donna Hughes, Kathy Conrad, Susan Hilty and Dara McClure. Pallbearers were Art Neuenschwander, Irvin Haverland, Bob Neuenschwander, Jerry Jerome, Ernie Smith and Melvin Haverland. Honorary pallbearers were Everett Poynter, Willis Laughman, Epperson Jerome, Franklin Rapp, Charles Neuenschwander, Alfred Neuenschwander, and Clarence Neuenschwander. Burial was in Valley Center Cemetery under direction of Sheldon-Goodrich Funeral Home. TOMPKINS, Robert N. 1941 - 1996 Robert N. Tompkins, 55, Warrensburg, died July 11, 1996, at Shawnee Mission Hospital, Shawnee Mission, Ks. He was battling brain cancer. The family received friends on July 13 at the Central Missouri State University Alumni Chapel, Warrensburg. Funeral services were held on July 14, at the Sheldon-Goodrich Chapel, Osceola. Pallbearers were Lynn Solomon, Jim Hudson, Ronald Vandam, Floyd Walker, Roger Denker and Jim Conn. Honorary pallbearers were Mike Carter, Jim Pilkington, David Defrain, Curt Reams, Dean Vogelaar, Rusty Newman and Gary Walsner. The funeral service was conducted by Ronald Vandam with eulogies given by Jim Crane, Lynn Solomon, Jim Hudson and Elois Pelton. Burial was at the Valley Center Cemetery, deepwater. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Brain Tumor Association in care of the funeral home. Mr. Tompkins was born on October 7, 1941, in St. Clair County, the son of Howard and Esther Tompkins. Mr. Tompkins graduated from Lowry City High School. He graduated from Central Missouri State College in 1962 with a bachelor of education degree and his master of education degree in 1963; and his doctorate of education degree in 1968 from the University of Utah. At Central Missouri State University he taught physical education for 33 years and coached Mules baseball at CMSU for 15 years from 1965 through 1980 compiling a 248-164-1 record (.602 winning percentage). The 248 wins and 15 seasons as head coach are the most wins for any Mules' baseball coach. Under Tompkins, the Mules baseball teams won MIAA titles in 1966, 1971 and 1874 and earned NCAA tournament berths in 1971 and 1974. The 1974 squad finished fourth in the nation. In 1974, Tompkins was named the MIAA Coach of the Year. Tompkins and the 1974 baseball team have been inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame at CMSU. Tompkins played baseball for the Mules and was an All-American pitcher and a three-year letterman. He received the Outstanding Senior Male Athlete Award in 1962. He coached the Mules' and Jennies' tennis teams from 1985-87. Dr. Tompkins was a professor in the CMSU Department of Physical Education for 33 years. He sponsored the Physical Education Majors club for 20 years. His memberships were in the American Alliance of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, member of the Missouri Association of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance where he was currently serving as president. Honors received from MAHPERD include the Robert Taylor Outstanding Service Award and the Presidential Awards for Service. He was a member of the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society in Education. He was preceded in death by his parents, Howard and Esther Tompkins, and a sister, Rebecca Tompkins. He is survived by his tow daughters, Kyla Jean Creollo of Joplin and Kristie Lynne Sterrett, Lee's Summit; two granddaughters, Kacie Lynne and Kalley, Marie Creollo of Joplin. ==================================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or for presentation by other persons or organizations. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for purposes other than stated above must obtain the written consent of the file contributor. This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by the Henry County MOGenWeb http://www.rootsweb.com/~mohenry/henryco.html Contact the Henry County Coordinator for comments or corrections. ====================================================================