Willard grew up on his family farm in Rushville, Missouri and at an early age started working as a carpenter with his father, brother and uncles in Smith Brothers Construction. He joined the Army in the middle of World War II and qualified for Officer Candidate School by passing his entrance exam with a score of 99%. He served over four years in the Corps of Engineers before he was stricken with Ankylosing Spondylitis, a disease that causes pain and swelling of the spine and joints in the neck, arms, legs. He was medically discharged 27 Mar 1946. Despite this disease, after his discharge from the Army, he continued to work as a carpenter and bricklayer, and worked in the auto industry bringing cars from the factories in Wisconsin down to auto dealers in the Kansas City area. He also studied and became a certified television and radio repairman. His Ankylosing Spondylitis started forming into arthritis in his neck and spine, and he no longer had any movement in his back or neck. He still tried to remain active and actually helped build his brother's restaurant and party and gift store in Warsaw, Missouri in the 1960s. He also was one of the masons that helped build the Tonganoxie High School in the 1950s.
His nickname most often was Smitty, but when his first child was just learning to carry on some conversation, she took to calling him Squill and called her mother Du-weese. She heard the other family members calling them Willard and Louise, so that's what their nicknames were for a while.
He had an amazing mind and a wide interest in all subjects, read voraciously, and quite often was found reading the Bible and said he was studying up for the big test. He loved puzzles of every kind, loved to figure out how things worked, and liked to tinker and build things, such as the amazing centrifugal drawing machine, or his glass 3-D tic-tac-toe game. He taught himself how to play the violin or "fiddle" as he liked to call it, his electric guitar and his slide harmonica. He loved to watch boxing and actually competed in welterweight boxing in the Saint Joseph, Missouri, area, before he joined the service. He also loved to backyard-garden and he and his wife would cook up some of the most fabulous meals or spend days canning their vegetables or making strawberry preserves. He would turn out the chocolate cream or coconut cream pies and his wife would whip up some peach cobbler or cherry pies to compete. He made the greatest cream puffs, or was it his lemon cheesecake or Rice Krispie squares that were the best? And don't forget the peanut butter cookies, Cornish meat pies, or from-scratch strawberry shortcakes.
For years, he always had a parakeet as a little buddy. He would train them (or they would train him) to fly to his hand from their cage, or they would sit on his toes as he reclined in his chair to watch tv. He loved to set them up in the kitchen sink so they could play in a trickle of water coming out of the faucet. His little parakeet would ride on his shoulder as he walked around the house puttering with his projects.
He was survived by his wife, Mary, three children, nine grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and one step-great-grandchild. He was preceded in death by his parents, his brother and two grandchildren. He was well loved and is greatly missed.
"The blink of an eye, the flip of your hand as you turn a page of the newspaper, the uhhum when you cleared your throat, a wheeze and a cough, a shuffle as you walk, a little choreographed piece when you were puttering in the kitchen or creating a full scale meal. Where does the light go, when you die?"
US Army 20 Mar 1942 to 27 Mar 1946
Grandson Jon Edward Abbott
Grandson Michael Juan Padilla
His nickname most often was Smitty, but when his first child was just learning to carry on some conversation, she took to calling him Squill and called her mother Du-weese. She heard the other family members calling them Willard and Louise, so that's what their nicknames were for a while.
He had an amazing mind and a wide interest in all subjects, read voraciously, and quite often was found reading the Bible and said he was studying up for the big test. He loved puzzles of every kind, loved to figure out how things worked, and liked to tinker and build things, such as the amazing centrifugal drawing machine, or his glass 3-D tic-tac-toe game. He taught himself how to play the violin or "fiddle" as he liked to call it, his electric guitar and his slide harmonica. He loved to watch boxing and actually competed in welterweight boxing in the Saint Joseph, Missouri, area, before he joined the service. He also loved to backyard-garden and he and his wife would cook up some of the most fabulous meals or spend days canning their vegetables or making strawberry preserves. He would turn out the chocolate cream or coconut cream pies and his wife would whip up some peach cobbler or cherry pies to compete. He made the greatest cream puffs, or was it his lemon cheesecake or Rice Krispie squares that were the best? And don't forget the peanut butter cookies, Cornish meat pies, or from-scratch strawberry shortcakes.
For years, he always had a parakeet as a little buddy. He would train them (or they would train him) to fly to his hand from their cage, or they would sit on his toes as he reclined in his chair to watch tv. He loved to set them up in the kitchen sink so they could play in a trickle of water coming out of the faucet. His little parakeet would ride on his shoulder as he walked around the house puttering with his projects.
He was survived by his wife, Mary, three children, nine grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and one step-great-grandchild. He was preceded in death by his parents, his brother and two grandchildren. He was well loved and is greatly missed.
"The blink of an eye, the flip of your hand as you turn a page of the newspaper, the uhhum when you cleared your throat, a wheeze and a cough, a shuffle as you walk, a little choreographed piece when you were puttering in the kitchen or creating a full scale meal. Where does the light go, when you die?"
US Army 20 Mar 1942 to 27 Mar 1946
Grandson Jon Edward Abbott
Grandson Michael Juan Padilla
Willard grew up on his family farm in Rushville, Missouri and at an early age started working as a carpenter with his father, brother and uncles in Smith Brothers Construction. He joined the Army in the middle of World War II and qualified for Officer Candidate School by passing his entrance exam with a score of 99%. He served over four years in the Corps of Engineers before he was stricken with Ankylosing Spondylitis, a disease that causes pain and swelling of the spine and joints in the neck, arms, legs. He was medically discharged 27 Mar 1946. Despite this disease, after his discharge from the Army, he continued to work as a carpenter and bricklayer, and worked in the auto industry bringing cars from the factories in Wisconsin down to auto dealers in the Kansas City area. He also studied and became a certified television and radio repairman. His Ankylosing Spondylitis started forming into arthritis in his neck and spine, and he no longer had any movement in his back or neck. He still tried to remain active and actually helped build his brother's restaurant and party and gift store in Warsaw, Missouri in the 1960s. He also was one of the masons that helped build the Tonganoxie High School in the 1950s.
His nickname most often was Smitty, but when his first child was just learning to carry on some conversation, she took to calling him Squill and called her mother Du-weese. She heard the other family members calling them Willard and Louise, so that's what their nicknames were for a while.
He had an amazing mind and a wide interest in all subjects, read voraciously, and quite often was found reading the Bible and said he was studying up for the big test. He loved puzzles of every kind, loved to figure out how things worked, and liked to tinker and build things, such as the amazing centrifugal drawing machine, or his glass 3-D tic-tac-toe game. He taught himself how to play the violin or "fiddle" as he liked to call it, his electric guitar and his slide harmonica. He loved to watch boxing and actually competed in welterweight boxing in the Saint Joseph, Missouri, area, before he joined the service. He also loved to backyard-garden and he and his wife would cook up some of the most fabulous meals or spend days canning their vegetables or making strawberry preserves. He would turn out the chocolate cream or coconut cream pies and his wife would whip up some peach cobbler or cherry pies to compete. He made the greatest cream puffs, or was it his lemon cheesecake or Rice Krispie squares that were the best? And don't forget the peanut butter cookies, Cornish meat pies, or from-scratch strawberry shortcakes.
For years, he always had a parakeet as a little buddy. He would train them (or they would train him) to fly to his hand from their cage, or they would sit on his toes as he reclined in his chair to watch tv. He loved to set them up in the kitchen sink so they could play in a trickle of water coming out of the faucet. His little parakeet would ride on his shoulder as he walked around the house puttering with his projects.
He was survived by his wife, Mary, three children, nine grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and one step-great-grandchild. He was preceded in death by his parents, his brother and two grandchildren. He was well loved and is greatly missed.
"The blink of an eye, the flip of your hand as you turn a page of the newspaper, the uhhum when you cleared your throat, a wheeze and a cough, a shuffle as you walk, a little choreographed piece when you were puttering in the kitchen or creating a full scale meal. Where does the light go, when you die?"
US Army 20 Mar 1942 to 27 Mar 1946
Grandson Jon Edward Abbott
Grandson Michael Juan Padilla
His nickname most often was Smitty, but when his first child was just learning to carry on some conversation, she took to calling him Squill and called her mother Du-weese. She heard the other family members calling them Willard and Louise, so that's what their nicknames were for a while.
He had an amazing mind and a wide interest in all subjects, read voraciously, and quite often was found reading the Bible and said he was studying up for the big test. He loved puzzles of every kind, loved to figure out how things worked, and liked to tinker and build things, such as the amazing centrifugal drawing machine, or his glass 3-D tic-tac-toe game. He taught himself how to play the violin or "fiddle" as he liked to call it, his electric guitar and his slide harmonica. He loved to watch boxing and actually competed in welterweight boxing in the Saint Joseph, Missouri, area, before he joined the service. He also loved to backyard-garden and he and his wife would cook up some of the most fabulous meals or spend days canning their vegetables or making strawberry preserves. He would turn out the chocolate cream or coconut cream pies and his wife would whip up some peach cobbler or cherry pies to compete. He made the greatest cream puffs, or was it his lemon cheesecake or Rice Krispie squares that were the best? And don't forget the peanut butter cookies, Cornish meat pies, or from-scratch strawberry shortcakes.
For years, he always had a parakeet as a little buddy. He would train them (or they would train him) to fly to his hand from their cage, or they would sit on his toes as he reclined in his chair to watch tv. He loved to set them up in the kitchen sink so they could play in a trickle of water coming out of the faucet. His little parakeet would ride on his shoulder as he walked around the house puttering with his projects.
He was survived by his wife, Mary, three children, nine grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and one step-great-grandchild. He was preceded in death by his parents, his brother and two grandchildren. He was well loved and is greatly missed.
"The blink of an eye, the flip of your hand as you turn a page of the newspaper, the uhhum when you cleared your throat, a wheeze and a cough, a shuffle as you walk, a little choreographed piece when you were puttering in the kitchen or creating a full scale meal. Where does the light go, when you die?"
US Army 20 Mar 1942 to 27 Mar 1946
Grandson Jon Edward Abbott
Grandson Michael Juan Padilla
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