Lila Darlene Barnes ¹

  General Notes:

Lila Darlene Leas
Nov. 4, 1936-Oct. 18, 2007

Lila Darlene Leas, 70, of Southwest City, Mo., departed this life on Thursday, Oct. 18, 2007, at the Grove Nursing Center in Grove, Okla.

Darlene entered this life on Nov. 4, 1936, in Dodge, Okla., one of four children born to the late Floyd Lawrence and Jewell Ethel (Cooper) Barnes. She moved to Southwest City, Mo., as a child and was a 1954 graduate of the Southwest City High School. On Dec. 27, 1954, she was united in marriage to James Elsworth Leas and to this union two daughters and one son were born. She was employed for over 35 years at the Nichols Brothers Dry Goods Store in Southwest City, Mo. After the close of the store, Darlene also worked for 10 years as a teller at The Corner Stone Bank. She was a longtime faithful member of the Southwest City Full Gospel Church, where she taught Sunday school and sang in the choir. She and James enjoyed traveling the countryside and found great joy in each others company.

She was preceded in death by her parents and her husband of 46 years, James Elsworth Leas on May 7, 2001.

She is survived by her two daughters, Brenda Davis and husband, Larry, of Grove, Okla., and Kathy Keith and husband, Bud, of Tiff City, Mo.; a son, Brent Leas and wife, Stephanie, of Bella Vista, Ark.; 10 grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandson; a sister, Melba Weaver and husband, George, of Fairland, Okla.; two brothers, Lloyd Barnes and wife, Lynn, of Southwest City, Mo., and Lawrence Barnes of Vian, Okla.; a sister in-law, Twila Stiles of Stigler, Okla.; several nieces and nephews; as well as a host of other family and friends.

Funeral services for Lila Darlene Leas were 10 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 20, 2007, at the Southwest City Full Gospel Church with Pastors Richard Hart and Mark Short officiating. Burial followed in the Southwest City Cemetery. Those honoring her life by serving as pallbearers were Frank Woods, Mike Meek, Howard Meek, Larry Shields, Jeff Jones and Jeff Cooper. The grandsons served as honorary pallbearers; Jared Clark, Jeremy Schoonover, Kyle Jackson, William Clark, Josiah Leas, Jordan Schoonover, Dakota Clark and Levi Keith. The family received friends on Friday evening from 5 until 7 in the Southwest City Chapel of the Ozark Funeral Homes. Memorials are being directed to the Alzheimer's Association and contributions may be left at the funeral home. On-line condolences may be sent to the family through our website www.ozarkfuneralhome.com. Arrangements were under the personal care and direction of the Ozark Funeral Home in Southwest City, Mo.

Lila married James Elworth Leas, son of Frederick Roy Leas and Sarah Irene Drennan, on 27 Dec 1954. (James Elworth Leas was born on 9 Jan 1935 in Southwest City, , Mo, died on 7 May 2001 in Beverly Health Care Center of Anderson, MO and was buried in Southwest City Cemetery, Southwest City, , Missouri.)