Obituary of Oval M. Stoner

Oval M. Stoner of Macks Creek, Missouri was born October 23, 1924 in Urbana, Missouri to Joel F. and Viola A. (Parrack) Stoner. He died of complications of Alzheimer�s on October 24, 2009 in Buffalo, Missouri at the age of 85 years and one day. He grew up in Macks Creek with two brothers, Oral and Orval �Cotton�; another brother and a sister died in infancy. After their mother�s death when Oval was four, the brothers were raised by their maternal grandmother, Cora �Granny� Parrack. He made a profession of faith in Christ at an early age and was a member of Macks Creek First Baptist Church. He served with honor in the U.S. Army in India and Burma during World War II. On July 6, 1947, he married Betty L. Hix. Together they had four children and three grandchildren. Oval and Betty moved to Oregon in 1947 to find work in fruit harvesting and logging. In 1949 they returned to Missouri where they purchased acreage north of Macks Creek and built a home using timber they cleared from their land. Oval graduated from a VA high school in Urbana and later from Southwest Missouri State College (MSU). He was the first in his family to receive a college degree, a B.S. in Industrial Arts Education. He taught two years in Verona before returning to his hometown to teach shop and math. He retired from teaching in 1973. Oval loved hunting, fishing, reading the Bible, listening to old time gospel music, and tinkering in his workshop. His children often told friends, �My Daddy can fix anything.� The family has fond memories of the numerous gadgets he invented using only scrap parts. He was a teacher both by profession and personality and used every experience as an opportunity to share his knowledge with others. He was preceded in death by his parents, grandmother, brothers Oral, Orval and Noel, sister Ota, sister-in-law Nona (wife of Oral), and two sons, Dennis and Dale. Survivors include Betty, his faithful and loving wife of 62 years; son David and wife April Stoner, daughter Carolyn and husband Russ Baker, all of Macks Creek; grandchildren Jeremy Wallace of Springfield, Joel Stoner and Brandi Stoner both of Macks Creek; sister-in-law Mary Lou Stoner (wife of Orval) of Macks Creek and countless other family and friends. The family would like to thank the nursing staff of Colonial Springs Healthcare for the exceptional kindness and loving care they gave Oval during his final months.