Roy Taylor

Roy Laverne Taylor, age 92, of Paola, Kansas, passed away Saturday, January 31, 2009, at Lake Whitney Medical Center, Whitney, Texas. Roy was born January 7, 1917, in Spring Hill, Kansas, to Frank and Katie Taylor. Roy lived in Spring Hill and worked on the family farm until June 1942, when he was drafted in WWII. He proudly served in the United States Army in North Africa, Sicily, Italy, Germany, and France. Upon his discharge, he received several Bronze Stars and returned home to the family farm in Spring Hill in November 1945. Roy was united in marriage to Ola Ree Thatcher on December 7, 1947, in Gardner, Kansas, and together became proud parents of two sons, Edward and David. After their wedding, they lived in Gardner and Wellsville before making their home in Paola in 1956. Roy worked 19 years for the Kansas State Highway Department until his retirement in 1982. After retirement, Roy worked at the Presbyterian Church for about 12 years. Roy also helped Ree babysit several children, from newborns to five years old. Roy enjoyed fishing, gardening, and traveling. His last years were spent in the cool summers of Colorado and the warm winters of Texas. He was a member of the First Christian Church of Paola. Roy was preceded in death by his parents, brother, and sister, and his wife in 2005. Roy leaves behind to cherish his memory his children, Edward Taylor and his wife Mary of Whitney, TX, and David Taylor and his wife, LeAnn, of Greeley, CO; grandchildren, Suzanne Brake and her husband, Jason, of Plano, TX, Jennifer Bagnasco and her husband, Andre, of Tampa, FL, Christy Beiser of Ellsworth Air Force Base, SD, Joseph and Gregory Taylor, both of Greeley, CO, and Christina Hatfield and her husband, Mark; great-grandchildren, Sarah, Rachel, Kayla, Keegan, Jason, Payton, Piper, and Aiden; sister-in-law, Frances Taylor of Wellsville, KS; numerous nieces and nephews; and a host of friends, all of whom will miss him dearly.