Eldon Hixson

ELDON HIXSON

Eldon Hixson, 86, of Gower, Mo. passed away, Friday, January 20, 2006 in St. Joseph.

He was born on December 27, 1919 in the family farm home one mile south of Gower, the son of Frank and Lena (Hawkins) Hixson.

He attended Gower Elementary School and graduated from Gower High School in 1937. He then went to Missouri University, class of 1941 where he was a member of Alpha Gamma Sigma, Alpha Zeta, Ruf Nex, Mystical Seven and participated in varsity football. During this time, on August 10,1940, he married Mary Cecelia Thibodeaux.

After graduation he worked briefly for the Farm Bureau before entering the Marine Corps where he was awarded a Purple Heart for wounds sustained during the Saipan campaign of WW II.

Eldon then returned to Gower to farm and teach agriculture and coach football at Gower High School.

At the outbreak of the Korean Conflict, his Marine Corps Reserve Unit was called up and they were deployed to Korea. He was a Chosin Reservoir Marine and he never again liked cold weather or camping. At the conclusion of the Korean Conflict he was honorably discharged from the Marine Corps.

Upon his return from Korea he enrolled in Kansas City School of Mortuary Science. After completing his studies he began working at the Bender Funeral Home in Lenox, Iowa where he made many lifelong friends.

In 1960 the family returned to Gower, where Eldon and Mary established the Hixson Funeral Home. In 1977 they retired and sold their funeral home to Jack and Shari Klein. In 1978 Eldon was elected Clinton County Presiding Judge and served for three terms. He also served as President of the Missouri Association of Counties and President of Missouri Highway Engineers.

Eldon was a member of St. Ann?s Catholic Church and the Knights of Columbus, both in Plattsburg, American Legion Post #393, Gower, the Gower Lions Club and the Old Timer?s Baseball Hall of Fame. He was also instrumental in starting the Gower Convalescent Center and the Gower Swim Club.

Throughout his long life, Eldon never knew a stranger, often reaching out to those who needed a helping hand. During the many stages of his life, he was known as, Eldon, Short, Buck, Captain, Coach, Judge, Mr. Hixson, Daddy and Grandpa.

Eldon was preceded in death by his wife, Mary, on July 26, 2003, his parents and one sister, Dorothy DuBois.

He is survived by his wife, Ruth Yager Brown Hixson, children: Patricia Wright and husband Dennis, Shawnee Mission, KS, Martha Holmes and husband, Frank, Birmingham, AL, John Hixson and wife, Fran, St. Louis, MO and Helen Reynolds and husband, Jim, Blue Springs, MO, ten grandchildren, Wendy and husband Nick, Adam, Katie, Becky, Jay, Tina, Tim and wife Stephanie, Callie, Rex, and Erin.

FUNERAL SERVICE: 3:00 P.M., Sunday, January 22nd, at the Hixson-Klein Funeral Home, Gower.
BURIAL WITH MILITARY HONORS: Allen Cemetery, Gower
Visitation: 6:30-8:30 P.M., Saturday (tonight) and one hour prior to the service, Sunday, at the funeral home.

Donations may be made to your favorite charity.