DONALD LEE HOUSE OBITUARY
Donald Lee House was born in Bolivar, MO, February 12, 1933, the eldest child of Jesse W. House and Lela Breshears House. He met his death Thursday, June 3, 1954, near Kitzingen, Germany, when struck by lightning while on a field trip with his unit of the U. S. Army Engineers.
All his education was received in the Bolivar schools. After graduation from Bolivar High School with the class of 1951, he completed two years in Southwest Baptist College in May, 1953. On June 22 he entered U. S. military service and had served nearly a year at the time of his death.
At the age of ten years he joined the First Baptist Church of Bolivar and was a leader in the work of the church among the young people.
Donald was known as a good basketball player in high school and college and a good student, both in grades and in various school activities. But even more he had the respect and admiration of all who knew him for being the highest type of young Christian manhood. As evidence of that moral integrity, in 1953 he won a Life Beautiful Award, an honor bestowed each year by Southwest Baptist College upon the boy and the girl who best measure up to the highest ideals of character and citizenship during their two years in the college.
He is survived by his parents and by two sisters, Patsy and Willodean, and by three grandparents, Mrs. Anna House and Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Breshears.
Officiating Clergyman - The Rev. Carl Goodson
Final Resting Place - Payne Cemetery near Polk, MO.
Military Rites at the Grave by a Detachment of Army Personnel from For Leonard Wood.
Escorts - Bill Roberts, Jr.; Phil Dorth; Dean Brim; Mike Speer; Doyle Standley; Max Roweton
_______________________________________
Lela wrote Orlena & Everett Woodruff a letter on July 13, 1954 after the funeral of her son Donald Lee: Dear Orlena & Everett,
July is a sad month for us. Ten years ago today we lost Deryll and one week ago today we buried Donnie. Seems like these past 6 weeks have been a dreadful nightmare, just a bad dream from which we shall awake and find everything the same as before. But we know that can never be.
Imagine you want to hear about funeral etc. Kenneth and Faye can tell you their impressions of it when they see you. We thought it a beautiful simple service.
Jesse, Lonnie, Buck & Max Roweton, Virgil Payne, Bill Roberts, Dean Brim, Voyne & Kenneth went to Springfield to meet the train at 4:20 Monday July 5. They were back before 7. The escort that came was Polish boy who lives in PA. He was hard to understand. This was his duty to be escort and has been for 1.5 years. Sometimes he just gets back from one trip, boards another train, and starts out again. However, this was first time to MO or this far west. He told Dr. Goodson largest funeral he had attended in his 1.5 years as escort. People came to see us & brought so much food he would shake his head and say "I never saw anything like it." He had been in Army 12 years, in 2 wars and was covered with ribbons and things. I think he went away with a pretty good opinion of MO except the heat. He slept at the hotel but ate all his meals with us except breakfast.
When they arrived at funeral home everyone went on home and Buck opened the casket after everyone left. The escort thought that his body would be sealed in glass but it wasn't. They usually are but since he was so tall they had to make one especially for him. It was steel but inside like any ordinary casket. anyway we were afraid we couldn't open the casket at all. When Buck saw how good he looked he came to get Jesse to look. After Jesse looked he got Voyne & Kenneth and they thought he was okay for everyone to see. so Buck opened up the casket at the funeral home for whoever wanted to go out there. It took 2 books to hold the names of the visitors or I should say friends who called. We had 63 sprays and baskets of flowers day of funeral and the church was over flowing. Took 40 minutes to march around to view the body.
The songs were "Near the Heart of God", "I Know that My Redeemer Liveth" and "Does Jesus Care".
Fort Leonard Wood sent a dozen soldiers over. One boy stood at the head of the casket during the funeral service with his gun in his hand. Two stood at the foot one with a gun and the other with the flag. They never moved during the service. (Don did that once at the funeral of a Colonel at Camp Polk.) While they viewed the body 2 stood at the head and the escort & other one stood at the foot. They carried the body in and out between 2 lines of soldiers. At the cemetery the bugler played and they fired 2 volleys of shots.
The escort presented the flag to Chaplain Greene & he in turn presented it to me. Dr. Goodson preached the funeral and Chaplain Greene (he did get to come and brought Dan Suits the boy who slept next to Don.) led in prayer. At the cemetery Greene took charge & Dr. Goodson led in prayer. Everyone said it was beautiful service. Some said saddest and sweetest funeral they ever attended.
I think Don looked pretty natural considering the fact that it just lacked 2 day being 5 weeks. I thought his mouth looked little full and he had a line in his forehead that wasn't there but I suspect time did that. His hair looked good, but he didn't like Army clothes and we didn't dare change. Think he would have looked more as we knew him with civilian clothes on.
At the post office they say they never saw anything like it. We didn't know how many friends we and Don had until our trouble came.
Lela
Donald Lee House was born in Bolivar, MO, February 12, 1933, the eldest child of Jesse W. House and Lela Breshears House. He met his death Thursday, June 3, 1954, near Kitzingen, Germany, when struck by lightning while on a field trip with his unit of the U. S. Army Engineers.
All his education was received in the Bolivar schools. After graduation from Bolivar High School with the class of 1951, he completed two years in Southwest Baptist College in May, 1953. On June 22 he entered U. S. military service and had served nearly a year at the time of his death.
At the age of ten years he joined the First Baptist Church of Bolivar and was a leader in the work of the church among the young people.
Donald was known as a good basketball player in high school and college and a good student, both in grades and in various school activities. But even more he had the respect and admiration of all who knew him for being the highest type of young Christian manhood. As evidence of that moral integrity, in 1953 he won a Life Beautiful Award, an honor bestowed each year by Southwest Baptist College upon the boy and the girl who best measure up to the highest ideals of character and citizenship during their two years in the college.
He is survived by his parents and by two sisters, Patsy and Willodean, and by three grandparents, Mrs. Anna House and Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Breshears.
Officiating Clergyman - The Rev. Carl Goodson
Final Resting Place - Payne Cemetery near Polk, MO.
Military Rites at the Grave by a Detachment of Army Personnel from For Leonard Wood.
Escorts - Bill Roberts, Jr.; Phil Dorth; Dean Brim; Mike Speer; Doyle Standley; Max Roweton
_______________________________________
Lela wrote Orlena & Everett Woodruff a letter on July 13, 1954 after the funeral of her son Donald Lee: Dear Orlena & Everett,
July is a sad month for us. Ten years ago today we lost Deryll and one week ago today we buried Donnie. Seems like these past 6 weeks have been a dreadful nightmare, just a bad dream from which we shall awake and find everything the same as before. But we know that can never be.
Imagine you want to hear about funeral etc. Kenneth and Faye can tell you their impressions of it when they see you. We thought it a beautiful simple service.
Jesse, Lonnie, Buck & Max Roweton, Virgil Payne, Bill Roberts, Dean Brim, Voyne & Kenneth went to Springfield to meet the train at 4:20 Monday July 5. They were back before 7. The escort that came was Polish boy who lives in PA. He was hard to understand. This was his duty to be escort and has been for 1.5 years. Sometimes he just gets back from one trip, boards another train, and starts out again. However, this was first time to MO or this far west. He told Dr. Goodson largest funeral he had attended in his 1.5 years as escort. People came to see us & brought so much food he would shake his head and say "I never saw anything like it." He had been in Army 12 years, in 2 wars and was covered with ribbons and things. I think he went away with a pretty good opinion of MO except the heat. He slept at the hotel but ate all his meals with us except breakfast.
When they arrived at funeral home everyone went on home and Buck opened the casket after everyone left. The escort thought that his body would be sealed in glass but it wasn't. They usually are but since he was so tall they had to make one especially for him. It was steel but inside like any ordinary casket. anyway we were afraid we couldn't open the casket at all. When Buck saw how good he looked he came to get Jesse to look. After Jesse looked he got Voyne & Kenneth and they thought he was okay for everyone to see. so Buck opened up the casket at the funeral home for whoever wanted to go out there. It took 2 books to hold the names of the visitors or I should say friends who called. We had 63 sprays and baskets of flowers day of funeral and the church was over flowing. Took 40 minutes to march around to view the body.
The songs were "Near the Heart of God", "I Know that My Redeemer Liveth" and "Does Jesus Care".
Fort Leonard Wood sent a dozen soldiers over. One boy stood at the head of the casket during the funeral service with his gun in his hand. Two stood at the foot one with a gun and the other with the flag. They never moved during the service. (Don did that once at the funeral of a Colonel at Camp Polk.) While they viewed the body 2 stood at the head and the escort & other one stood at the foot. They carried the body in and out between 2 lines of soldiers. At the cemetery the bugler played and they fired 2 volleys of shots.
The escort presented the flag to Chaplain Greene & he in turn presented it to me. Dr. Goodson preached the funeral and Chaplain Greene (he did get to come and brought Dan Suits the boy who slept next to Don.) led in prayer. At the cemetery Greene took charge & Dr. Goodson led in prayer. Everyone said it was beautiful service. Some said saddest and sweetest funeral they ever attended.
I think Don looked pretty natural considering the fact that it just lacked 2 day being 5 weeks. I thought his mouth looked little full and he had a line in his forehead that wasn't there but I suspect time did that. His hair looked good, but he didn't like Army clothes and we didn't dare change. Think he would have looked more as we knew him with civilian clothes on.
At the post office they say they never saw anything like it. We didn't know how many friends we and Don had until our trouble came.
Lela
DONALD LEE HOUSE OBITUARY
Donald Lee House was born in Bolivar, MO, February 12, 1933, the eldest child of Jesse W. House and Lela Breshears House. He met his death Thursday, June 3, 1954, near Kitzingen, Germany, when struck by lightning while on a field trip with his unit of the U. S. Army Engineers.
All his education was received in the Bolivar schools. After graduation from Bolivar High School with the class of 1951, he completed two years in Southwest Baptist College in May, 1953. On June 22 he entered U. S. military service and had served nearly a year at the time of his death.
At the age of ten years he joined the First Baptist Church of Bolivar and was a leader in the work of the church among the young people.
Donald was known as a good basketball player in high school and college and a good student, both in grades and in various school activities. But even more he had the respect and admiration of all who knew him for being the highest type of young Christian manhood. As evidence of that moral integrity, in 1953 he won a Life Beautiful Award, an honor bestowed each year by Southwest Baptist College upon the boy and the girl who best measure up to the highest ideals of character and citizenship during their two years in the college.
He is survived by his parents and by two sisters, Patsy and Willodean, and by three grandparents, Mrs. Anna House and Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Breshears.
Officiating Clergyman - The Rev. Carl Goodson
Final Resting Place - Payne Cemetery near Polk, MO.
Military Rites at the Grave by a Detachment of Army Personnel from For Leonard Wood.
Escorts - Bill Roberts, Jr.; Phil Dorth; Dean Brim; Mike Speer; Doyle Standley; Max Roweton
_______________________________________
Lela wrote Orlena & Everett Woodruff a letter on July 13, 1954 after the funeral of her son Donald Lee: Dear Orlena & Everett,
July is a sad month for us. Ten years ago today we lost Deryll and one week ago today we buried Donnie. Seems like these past 6 weeks have been a dreadful nightmare, just a bad dream from which we shall awake and find everything the same as before. But we know that can never be.
Imagine you want to hear about funeral etc. Kenneth and Faye can tell you their impressions of it when they see you. We thought it a beautiful simple service.
Jesse, Lonnie, Buck & Max Roweton, Virgil Payne, Bill Roberts, Dean Brim, Voyne & Kenneth went to Springfield to meet the train at 4:20 Monday July 5. They were back before 7. The escort that came was Polish boy who lives in PA. He was hard to understand. This was his duty to be escort and has been for 1.5 years. Sometimes he just gets back from one trip, boards another train, and starts out again. However, this was first time to MO or this far west. He told Dr. Goodson largest funeral he had attended in his 1.5 years as escort. People came to see us & brought so much food he would shake his head and say "I never saw anything like it." He had been in Army 12 years, in 2 wars and was covered with ribbons and things. I think he went away with a pretty good opinion of MO except the heat. He slept at the hotel but ate all his meals with us except breakfast.
When they arrived at funeral home everyone went on home and Buck opened the casket after everyone left. The escort thought that his body would be sealed in glass but it wasn't. They usually are but since he was so tall they had to make one especially for him. It was steel but inside like any ordinary casket. anyway we were afraid we couldn't open the casket at all. When Buck saw how good he looked he came to get Jesse to look. After Jesse looked he got Voyne & Kenneth and they thought he was okay for everyone to see. so Buck opened up the casket at the funeral home for whoever wanted to go out there. It took 2 books to hold the names of the visitors or I should say friends who called. We had 63 sprays and baskets of flowers day of funeral and the church was over flowing. Took 40 minutes to march around to view the body.
The songs were "Near the Heart of God", "I Know that My Redeemer Liveth" and "Does Jesus Care".
Fort Leonard Wood sent a dozen soldiers over. One boy stood at the head of the casket during the funeral service with his gun in his hand. Two stood at the foot one with a gun and the other with the flag. They never moved during the service. (Don did that once at the funeral of a Colonel at Camp Polk.) While they viewed the body 2 stood at the head and the escort & other one stood at the foot. They carried the body in and out between 2 lines of soldiers. At the cemetery the bugler played and they fired 2 volleys of shots.
The escort presented the flag to Chaplain Greene & he in turn presented it to me. Dr. Goodson preached the funeral and Chaplain Greene (he did get to come and brought Dan Suits the boy who slept next to Don.) led in prayer. At the cemetery Greene took charge & Dr. Goodson led in prayer. Everyone said it was beautiful service. Some said saddest and sweetest funeral they ever attended.
I think Don looked pretty natural considering the fact that it just lacked 2 day being 5 weeks. I thought his mouth looked little full and he had a line in his forehead that wasn't there but I suspect time did that. His hair looked good, but he didn't like Army clothes and we didn't dare change. Think he would have looked more as we knew him with civilian clothes on.
At the post office they say they never saw anything like it. We didn't know how many friends we and Don had until our trouble came.
Lela
Donald Lee House was born in Bolivar, MO, February 12, 1933, the eldest child of Jesse W. House and Lela Breshears House. He met his death Thursday, June 3, 1954, near Kitzingen, Germany, when struck by lightning while on a field trip with his unit of the U. S. Army Engineers.
All his education was received in the Bolivar schools. After graduation from Bolivar High School with the class of 1951, he completed two years in Southwest Baptist College in May, 1953. On June 22 he entered U. S. military service and had served nearly a year at the time of his death.
At the age of ten years he joined the First Baptist Church of Bolivar and was a leader in the work of the church among the young people.
Donald was known as a good basketball player in high school and college and a good student, both in grades and in various school activities. But even more he had the respect and admiration of all who knew him for being the highest type of young Christian manhood. As evidence of that moral integrity, in 1953 he won a Life Beautiful Award, an honor bestowed each year by Southwest Baptist College upon the boy and the girl who best measure up to the highest ideals of character and citizenship during their two years in the college.
He is survived by his parents and by two sisters, Patsy and Willodean, and by three grandparents, Mrs. Anna House and Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Breshears.
Officiating Clergyman - The Rev. Carl Goodson
Final Resting Place - Payne Cemetery near Polk, MO.
Military Rites at the Grave by a Detachment of Army Personnel from For Leonard Wood.
Escorts - Bill Roberts, Jr.; Phil Dorth; Dean Brim; Mike Speer; Doyle Standley; Max Roweton
_______________________________________
Lela wrote Orlena & Everett Woodruff a letter on July 13, 1954 after the funeral of her son Donald Lee: Dear Orlena & Everett,
July is a sad month for us. Ten years ago today we lost Deryll and one week ago today we buried Donnie. Seems like these past 6 weeks have been a dreadful nightmare, just a bad dream from which we shall awake and find everything the same as before. But we know that can never be.
Imagine you want to hear about funeral etc. Kenneth and Faye can tell you their impressions of it when they see you. We thought it a beautiful simple service.
Jesse, Lonnie, Buck & Max Roweton, Virgil Payne, Bill Roberts, Dean Brim, Voyne & Kenneth went to Springfield to meet the train at 4:20 Monday July 5. They were back before 7. The escort that came was Polish boy who lives in PA. He was hard to understand. This was his duty to be escort and has been for 1.5 years. Sometimes he just gets back from one trip, boards another train, and starts out again. However, this was first time to MO or this far west. He told Dr. Goodson largest funeral he had attended in his 1.5 years as escort. People came to see us & brought so much food he would shake his head and say "I never saw anything like it." He had been in Army 12 years, in 2 wars and was covered with ribbons and things. I think he went away with a pretty good opinion of MO except the heat. He slept at the hotel but ate all his meals with us except breakfast.
When they arrived at funeral home everyone went on home and Buck opened the casket after everyone left. The escort thought that his body would be sealed in glass but it wasn't. They usually are but since he was so tall they had to make one especially for him. It was steel but inside like any ordinary casket. anyway we were afraid we couldn't open the casket at all. When Buck saw how good he looked he came to get Jesse to look. After Jesse looked he got Voyne & Kenneth and they thought he was okay for everyone to see. so Buck opened up the casket at the funeral home for whoever wanted to go out there. It took 2 books to hold the names of the visitors or I should say friends who called. We had 63 sprays and baskets of flowers day of funeral and the church was over flowing. Took 40 minutes to march around to view the body.
The songs were "Near the Heart of God", "I Know that My Redeemer Liveth" and "Does Jesus Care".
Fort Leonard Wood sent a dozen soldiers over. One boy stood at the head of the casket during the funeral service with his gun in his hand. Two stood at the foot one with a gun and the other with the flag. They never moved during the service. (Don did that once at the funeral of a Colonel at Camp Polk.) While they viewed the body 2 stood at the head and the escort & other one stood at the foot. They carried the body in and out between 2 lines of soldiers. At the cemetery the bugler played and they fired 2 volleys of shots.
The escort presented the flag to Chaplain Greene & he in turn presented it to me. Dr. Goodson preached the funeral and Chaplain Greene (he did get to come and brought Dan Suits the boy who slept next to Don.) led in prayer. At the cemetery Greene took charge & Dr. Goodson led in prayer. Everyone said it was beautiful service. Some said saddest and sweetest funeral they ever attended.
I think Don looked pretty natural considering the fact that it just lacked 2 day being 5 weeks. I thought his mouth looked little full and he had a line in his forehead that wasn't there but I suspect time did that. His hair looked good, but he didn't like Army clothes and we didn't dare change. Think he would have looked more as we knew him with civilian clothes on.
At the post office they say they never saw anything like it. We didn't know how many friends we and Don had until our trouble came.
Lela
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