Thomas Haggard

Born September 7th, 1925 in Kansas City, Missouri, the second child of
James Homer and Gwendolyn Faye Haggard. For most of his childhood
Tom lived with his parents and three siblings (James, Dolores, and David)
at 6742 Askew in Kansas City and graduated from Southeast High School
in Kansas City in 1942. After graduation he met Lola May Stovall while
both were working at Sears Roebuck at 15th and Cleveland. That would
prove to be a pivotal moment in his life.
While still only 17, he enlisted in the US Navy in 1943 and after training
was assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Lake Champlain at the naval base
in Norfolk, Virginia. The ship wasn’t commissioned until the summer of
1945 and did not see action during WWII, but Tom and the crew were
involved in the stateside training operations for Navy pilots in preparation
for their deployment overseas.
In June of 1946 Tom was discharged from the Navy with the rank of
Ordinance Officer 2nd Class. On July 20th of that year he married his
sweetheart Lola who would remain his faithful wife for 65 years until her
death in 2011.
The couple moved to 408 South Hocker in Independence, Missouri to take
up residence in the garage behind Lola’s mother’s house. While living
there the couple would see two children born, Cathy Renee in 1949 and
David James in 1951. During 1947 and 1948 Tom would be learning the
carpentry trade as an apprentice. In 1951 he worked doing carpentry
repairs and cleanup in Kansas City’s West Bottoms area after the
devastating floods of that year.
By 1955 Tom and Lola were building the first of three family homes at
12505 E. 41st St. in Independence. The second home was located at 16305
E. 34th St. Terrace with the family finally settling in 1980 at 4811 Lee’s
Summit Road where Tom would live out his final years.
After working his way up the ranks in several companies, Tom eventually
started his own business, Haggard and Dodd Construction in 1972 and
would maintain that operation until 1979.
Tom was a deacon at the First Presbyterian Church of Independence before
moving to Trinity Presbyterian in Independence where he served as an
elder and remained a member the rest of his life.
He was a member of Carpenter’s Local Union #1329 for 35 years and a
member of Masons Lodge #76.
Antique cars, motorcycles, trucks, and tractors were all favorite toys for
Tom and he seemed to be constantly tinkering with something that had
wheels and a motor. He also held a pilot’s license and owned a Piper
Cherokee plane for several years.
He was an accomplished wood carver, a hunter, a country music fan, a
cowboy at heart, loved the mountains of the American west, and was a man
who valued honesty and hard work.
But above all else, Tom was a man who loved and cared for his family and
friends.
Thomas Jackson Haggard passed away at the St. Luke’s Hospice House in
Kansas City on November 15, 2018 after battling various illnesses and
succumbing to a lung tumor at the age of 93. His passing was peaceful with
his children by his side.
He leaves behind his younger brother David Lee Haggard of Lee’s Summit,
Mo., his daughter Cathy Renee Ruppert of Kansas City and son David
James Haggard and daughter in law, Sonia Spotts of Kansas City, Mo. He
leaves two grandsons and their families, Brandon Shea Ruppert and Kelley
Ruppert of Tierra Amarilla, NM and their sons Ethan and Noah Ruppert,
Corey Tate Ruppert and DeNeill Ruppert of Topanga, California and their
two sons Maxwel and Milo Ruppert.
In addition, he leaves behind a loving group of nieces and nephews and
their families who were all a big part of his life and will miss him dearly.