Fox Funeral Home
John Dale Davis, 85, of Girard, Kansas, formerly of Cole Camp, passed away Friday, April 14, 2023, at Medicalodges Fort Scott in Fort Scott, Kansas. He was born on May 14, 1937, on the farm north of Lincoln, Missouri, a son of Roy Chester and Mary Rose (Maltsburger) Davis.
John worked on the farm and cut wood with an old crosscut saw with his dad and also delivered ice in the area with his dad. He attended McMurda, Fordney, and Rocky Ridge one-room schools near Cole Camp. At the age of fourteen, he went with Lawrence Harms and Carl Jones to work on a farm in Montana. When he turned sixteen, with his mother's permission, he joined the United States Army on July 20, 1953, and served his country honorably during the Korean War in Korea and then in Germany. He was discharged on July 22, 1958.
On August 13, 1957, he was united in marriage to Melba Vaughn and was blessed with the gift of five children, Michael, Mitchell, Maleia, Milburn, and Melissa.
John drove a truck hauling horses for Van Dyke Trucking and in 1963, he went to work for Crown Coach driving a bus and his route included taking new recruits to Fort Leonardwood. In 1968, he went to work for Yellow Freight in Kansas City. John decided it was time to be his own boss so he attended Missouri Auction School to become an auctioneer. He then auctioned machinery at Sikeston and also bought and sold equipment and trucked it to its final destination. He drove a charter bus out of Joplin, taking people on bus tours throughout the United States. He then started Davis Industrial Sales out of Liberal, selling industrial equipment, which he still owned.
In 1983, he met Reggie Geier at the mall in Joplin. He asked her out on a date and they've been together ever since.
John enjoyed his puppy dogs, Burt and Sissy, and telling stories. He was a charter member of the Oak Hills Coon Club near Cole Camp, where he auctioned the dogs at the water races and field trials. He had won several Kenny Rogers look-a-like contests. He was a lifetime member of the VFW, and was a member of the American Legion in Girard, Kansas, for thirty-three years and a member of the Masonic Lodge of Cole Camp and Masonic Lodge No. 292 of Lamar.
He is survived by his companion, Reggie Geier and her children, Rhonda Stonerock and Tony, Linda Redden, Lonny Geier, and Larry Geier; daughter, Melissa Kay Davis of Sedalia; sons, Michael Davis and Shelly, Mitchell Davis, and Milburn Davis and Lisa, all of Cole Camp; brother, Richard Davis of Independence; sixteen grandchildren, Nicole, Frank, Rickie, John, Melissa, Brandi, Joni, Megan, Austin, Sarah, Nicholas, Anthony, Aaron, William,
Adelle, and Arecca; sixteen great-grandchildren, Alan, Kristina, Riley, Huntley, Havyn, Parker, Jax, Benton, Marshal, Jentry, Maci, Taylor, Tommy, Mitchell, Jake, and Cayde; eight great-great-grandchildren, Jace, Colton, Weslee, Cora, London, Barrett, Brinlee, and Hunter; and numerous nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Roy and Mary Davis, daughter, Maleia Ann Craig, sister, Jean Lutjen, and brothers, Jack Davis, Tom Davis, and Roy Davis.
Graveside services will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, April 23, 2023, at Mt. Olivet Cemetery near Cole Camp with Pastor Jason Veale officiating. Military honors will be conducted by the American Legion Post No. 305 of Cole Camp. Honorary pallbearers will be his grandchildren. A pot luck meal and sharing of memories will follow at the Oak Hills Coon Club near Cole Camp.
Memorial contributions may be given to the family's choice in care of the Fox Funeral Home, Cole Camp. foxfuneralhomecolecampmo.comfoxfoxfuneralhomecolecampmo.com.
