America lost another member of its “Greatest Generation” on Saturday, July 13, 2019. Martha Sue Kite (93) was a steel magnolia with an adventurous spirit. She was born Martha Sue Nichols on June 29, 1926, on a 60-acre farm in Hartsburg, Missouri, and she was the 8th of 11 children born to Dorsey and Mae (Richardson) Nichols.
Visitation will take place 9:00 a.m. -10:00 a.m. Saturday, July 20, 2019 at Memorial Funeral Home with Funeral Services at 10:00 a.m. Burial will follow at Smith Chapel Cemetery.
Sue lived the American dream. Having grown up on a farm during the Great Depression, she was used to working hard and living with few amenities; and because three of her brothers served in the army during WWII, the money they sent home allowed her to be the first in her family to attend high school (Ashland High). She was very proud of the fact that she did her part to help the war effort in 1944 by being a “Rosie the Riveter” at North American Aviation in Kansas City, KS. On March 3, 1945, Sue married her sweetheart, Kenneth Kite, and they celebrated 66 years of marriage before Kenneth passed away in 2011. The two of them worked long hours side by side, raised four children, owned two small diners, and traveled all over the U.S.
Family was the most important thing in the world to Sue, and she loved doing things for other people. She was the “cookie” Granny. The grandkids and great grandkids knew they would always get hugs from Granny whenever they stopped by her house, but they also knew they would get cookies! Sue liked to crochet and she made each of her children and grandchildren beautiful doilies and afghans. She also liked to sew so, of course, she gave each of them sewing machines. She kept her mind sharp by doing word-search puzzles and jigsaw puzzles, and one of the highlights of her life was accepting Jesus Christ as her savior. Surrounded by family and friends, Sue was baptized on March 2, 2017, at the age of 90.
Sue was a wonderful inspiration to all her children and grandchildren, encouraging them to do their best and to be kind to other people; and she will be remembered for her loving heart and her zest for life.
She is survived by her four children--Mary Jane (George) Stuart, Phyllis Ann (Michael) Leach, Rhonda Kay (Ron) Bias, and Randy Eugene Kite, her 8 grandchildren—Tony (Keri) Stuart, Chris (Susan) Leach, Brittney (Patrick) Rutherford, Benjamin Kite, Kathryn Kite, and Hayden Kite of Columbia, Wendy (Wes) Mossinghoff of Overland Park, KS, and George (Angela) Stuart of Austin, TX, and her 11 great grandchildren—Chad Stuart, Russel Leach, Sarah Leach, Gabriel Scott, Shawn Fechter, and Wesson Rutherford of Columbia, Abigail Mossinghoff and Jacob Cummings of Overland Park, KS, and George Stuart, James Stuart, and David Stuart of Austin, TX.
