Obituary -- Buford Weddle 1929-2017

Buford Gene Weddle was born November 25, 1929 in Allendale, MO and died April 2, 2017 at his home in Maryville, MO. He was 87 years old.

Buford leaves behind his wife of 65 years, Wilberta (Sutherland) Weddle, three sons and two daughters—Alfred Mabbitt (Carol), Kansas City, MO; Lanny Weddle (Lynnette), Walden, CO; Joy Weddle, Parker, CO; Brenda Lewis (David), Ravenwood, MO; Clint Weddle (Shelly), Maryville, MO—a brother, Dean Weddle (Marie),Allendale, MO; and a sister, Ila Callaway, Red Oak, IA. Another brother, Ival Weddle, is deceased.

Buford was the son of Rufus Pleasant Weddle and Opal (Campbell) Weddle. He was raised with his siblings and a host of cousins during the Great Depression in the Nation, an area of Worth County, MO northeast of Allendale. He married Wilberta Sutherland, in Grant City, MO, on June 9, 1951. After serving in the Army during the Korean Conflict, he returned to Worth County and owned and operated a service station in Grant City. He eventually moved his wife and growing family to Kansas City, where he served first as manager of an auto parts store and then service manager of Farmland Industries’ flagship Co-op Station in North Kansas City, MO. In 1979, Buford returned to the rural environs he loved, this time to a small farm in Nodaway County, MO. He worked for Energizer Battery Company in Maryville for 12 years, retiring in December, 1991. He and his wife Wilberta moved to rural Ravenwood, MO in 1998, where he helped his son-in-law farm for several years. In 2015, Buford and Wilberta moved to The Villas at the Summit II in Maryville, where he lived out his final days. He was a member of the Laura Street Baptist Church, Maryville.

Buford loved music. He sang tenor and played the mandolin and harmonica by ear like nobody’s business. He was a great dancer and fantastic roller skater—he met his future wife at the skating rink in Mount Ayr, IA. He loved to take his family camping and fishing. He always had a huge garden in his backyard in Kansas City, keeping his rural roots alive. He invested much time and a good part of his soul in the Weddle Reunion and the Weddle Campground outside Allendale. His family was his pride and joy.

Additional survivors include six grandchildren—Larry Mabbitt, Grandview, MO; Gary Mabbitt (Lisa), Sun City, AZ; Randa Becket (Patrick), Aurora, CO; Zachary Robertson, Fairplay, CO; Cameron Weddle (Laci), Milaca, MN; and Caleb Weddle, Laramie, WY. He considered Brenda’s godchildren as his grandchildren as well—Austin Moddrell, Maryville; Chloe Moddrell and Claire Moddrell, Independence, MO. In addition, he has six great-grandchildren—Paige Mabbitt, Natalie Mabbitt, and Jenna Mabbitt, all of Sun City, AZ; Felicity Beckett and Tristan Beckett of Aurora, CO; and Newton Weddle of Milaca, MN. He leaves behind a host of nieces and nephews, cousins and friends.

Visitation will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, April 4, at Prugh-Dunfee Funeral Home in Grant City. Services will be at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, April 5, also at Prugh-Dunfee. Interment will be at the Kirk Cemetery in Allendale.

Memorial donations may be made to SSM Hospice in Maryville, MO, the Kirk Cemetery, or to the Weddle Reunion, Inc.