Gayle Wesley McKinnie

MCKINNIE, HOLT, LONG, BULLOCK, CRISS, ROBERTS, WITTER

Posted By: Ruth McDowell (email)
Date: 5/16/2011 at 13:57:18

Posted Obituary-Powers Funeral Home and Crematory Web page

Gayle W. McKinnie, 97, of Afton, died Tuesday, December 29, 2009 at Greater Regional Center in Creston. Services will be 11 a.m. Thursday Dec. 31, 2009 at Powers Funeral Home Afton, Iowa. Pastor Jerry Hoff and Pastor Jim Morris will officiate the service. Burial will be at Greenlawn Cemetery, northeast of Afton. Family will receive friends from 9 to 11 a.m. service time on Thursday at the Powers Funeral Home in Afton. Memorials can be made to Arispe United Methodist Church or Afton United Methodist Church. Online condolences may be given under the obituary category at www.powersfhf.com.

Gayle Wesley McKinnie was born August 11, 1912 to C. H. and Lena (Holt) McKinnie in Sandcreek Township, Union County, Iowa. He graduated from Arispe High School in 1929. After graduation Gayle helped on the family farm east of Arispe and drove an Afton Creamery butter truck to New York for two years.

On February 2, 1942 he was married to Wilma Long, also of Arispe. Gayle was inducted into the U.S. Army on March 25, 1942 in Des Moines, Iowa and was sent to Camp Crowder, Missouri, Fort Monmouth, New Jersey and Camp Mitchell, New York. Wilma was able to live near his military bases until he was attached to the 982nd Signal Service Company and shipped to North Africa on April 29, 1943. He served in Algeria and Tunisia in Africa, Sicily, Italy, France and Germany before starting home September 14, 1945. Gayle was discharged at Fort Sheridan, Illinois on September 22, 1945.

Gayle and Wilma moved to the family farm in the spring of 1946. Their daughters, Linda and Gayla, were born there. He did general farming and raised Hereford cattle.

Gayle was a member of the Arispe Methodist Church and served on the Arispe School Board for several years. Gayle and Wilma moved to Afton in 1970 and Gayle worked for North Central Gas Company until retiring in 1983. He was a member of the Afton Methodist Church, Masonic Lodge, Afton Community Club and proud member of the V.F.W. In May, 2008 he joined other WWII veterans traveling to Washington, D.C. as part of Honor Flight.

In May, 2009, Gayle celebrated his 80th Arispe High School class reunion and joked about being the oldest graduate still “hanging around”. His sense of humor remained intact to his last days, whether joking about his lack of hair or his son-in-law’s basketball record. While Wilma was living they enjoyed traveling. Gayle still loved tinkering in his shop, picking out black walnuts and always looked forward to the Thursday JOY meal to catch up on the latest happenings in Afton.

One of his favorite pastimes was driving out in the country to check on the corn and beans. At age 97, Gayle lived independently in his Afton home, although he was quick to tell everyone he had “four bosses” – daughters Linda and Gayla, sister Lois and niece Denise Fisk.

He was preceded in death by Wilma, his loving wife of 63 years, three brothers (Paul, Millard and Raymond) and two sisters (Ruth and Lola).

He his survived by his two daughters, Linda Bullock (husband Paul) of Council Bluffs, and Gayla McKinnie of Jefferson City, Missouri; sister Lois Carlson Criss of Afton; three granddaughters, Brie Roberts (husband Christopher) of Jefferson City, Tina Bullock (fiancé Jonathan Davis) of Denver, Colorado, and Blake Witter (husband David) of Columbia, Missouri; three great-grandchildren, Owen Thomas Witter and Olivia McKinnie Witter, Columbia, and Hattie Ann Roberts, Jefferson City; as well as numerous nieces and nephews.

Gayle hadn’t lost his touch with babies, meeting his two newest great granddaughters after their births this summer.