Laura Madelon "Maddie" Brunson

Laura Madelon (Cato) Brunson (or "Maddie" to those who knew her well) died peacefully on Monday April 15 in Blue Springs, Missouri, surrounded by family and friends.  Born and raised in Independence Mo, Maddie went to CMSU in Warrensburg to earn her BS in Education, and later married Gene Brunson (a tall and handsome guy she'd known only peripherally in high school) after he returned from duty in the Navy.  They spent a few years in Lawrence, Kansas as Gene completed his education under the GI Bill, then settled back into Independence, where they had two sons.  Maddie stayed busy as a homemaker until Gene's premature death from cancer at age 37.  She later went on to complete a Master’s degree in History from UMKC, and worked as the Church Archivist for the RLDS (now 'Community of Christ') church at the Auditorium in Independence until her retirement in 1988.

 She sought equality, integrity, and grace throughout her life, and never wavered in her belief of the constancy of God and of the continuity of the human Spirit.  She authored and co-authored several books and articles on subjects that included the history of women within the church, the nature of modern spirituality and the grieving process.  One of her favorite organizations was the RLDS Women's Ministry Commission, on which she served for only 6 years, but kept the friends she made there for the rest of her life.  In later years she became passionately involved in the Landmark Education (now Landmark Worldwide) community as a way of helping others resolve ongoing problems and make sense of their lives and experiences.

 Her devotion to family was also strong and lifelong.  She could tell many stories of how her childhood family taught her compassion, support and humor - whether it was her grandma Trask tending to her when she was sick (while baking all manner of goodies), her mother Fay working tirelessly to make ends meet on their farm, or her father Roy warning her and her siblings as they all returned from the garden patch overloaded with watermelons, "Now you kids be careful with those - if anybody drops one, we're gonna have to sit down right here and eat it - it'll go bad otherwise!"  From those beginnings she went on to love and cherish her husband, sons, daughter-in-law, grandsons, and many dear friends.

 Maddie was preceded in death by her husband Gene Brunson, brother Richard Cato and sister Margaret (Cato) Sponagle; she leaves behind sons Deighton (Maria Duda) and Gordon (Mary Jo Hogan), as well as grandsons Ben, Sam, and Andy Brunson.