Lamar Whitson Sr.

Lamar E. Whitson Sr. Lamar Edward Whitson Sr. of rural Thayer, Kansas, died Monday evening, August 14, 2006, at the Wilson County Hospital Emergency Room. He was 79. Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Friday, August 18, 2006, at the Seventh Day Adventist Church in Chanute under the direction of Penwell-Gabel Loran Fawcett Chapel in Neodesha. Pastors Norman Harvey and Herman Guy will officiate. Interment will be in Harrison Cemetery west of Thayer. Friends may call at the funeral home Wednesday from 1-5 p.m. and Thursday from 9 a.m.-8 p.m. The family will receive friends at the funeral home from 6-8 p.m. The son of Forrest William and Mina Lorrine Hisey Whitson, he was born August 30, 1926, in Altoona, KS. He graduated from Altoona High School in 1944. On September 15, 1942, he was united in marriage to Henrietta Dannels. She survives at the home. After early employment with the W.J. Small Company, he was employed for 19 years at the Standard Oil Refinery in Neodesha. Following the closing of the refinery, he owned and operated Reynolds Lumber in Altoona for 25 years before retiring. He was a member and elder of the Seventh Day Adventist Church in Thayer, a former member of the Enterprise Academy School Board, the Altoona Communities Industries, the board of directors of the Seventh Day Adventist Church and the board of directors of Rural Water District 10. In addition to his wife, he is survived by one daughter, Karen Sue Varndell of Chanute, KS; five sons, Lamar Whitson Jr. of Fredonia, Dan Whitson and Don Whitson of Thayer, Dennis Whitson of Olathe, KS, and Gerry Whitson of Shawnee, KS; a brother, Charles R. Whitson of Vancouver, WA; one sister, Lorrine Noel of El Paso, TX; 12 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. He is preceded in death by his parents, a brother, Forrest Reuben, and an infant sister. Memorial contributions may be made to the Enterprise Academy Endowment Fund and may be left at the funeral home. Condolences may be made to www.penwellgabel.com.