John Richard "Bill" Cave

Veterans Home in Mexico, MO. Bill was born May 18, 1924 in the

Dixie, Missouri community, the 10th of 14 children born to

Marcellus and Beulah (Corley) Cave.

Bill served in the U.S. Marine Corps during WWII. In 1945, he

fought on the front lines in the Battle of Iwo Jima, returning to the island

50 years later to commemorate the pivotal battle.

After his discharge, Bill went to work for Southwestern Bell

Telephone Company as a lineman and later an installer/repairman

while continuing to play baseball, a lifelong passion.

Bill was married to Wilma Faye Gathright in 1950. They had two

children, Rodney Kent and Rita Faye.

After retiring from Southwestern Bell in 1983 with 36 years of

service, Bill added gardening to his long list of interests which

included beekeeping, hunting, trapping and fishing.

In 1991, Bill married Mary Ellen Anderson and together they expanded

Bill’s love of gardening, becoming a popular local source of fresh

produce at the Fulton Farmers Market.

A life-long member of Dixie Christian Church, Bill enjoyed life to the

fullest and everyone who knew him has at least one favorite "Bill Cave"

story. While in his eighties, Bill participated for several years in the Polar Bear Challenge at the Lake of the Ozarks in support of the Special Olympics.

Bill is preceded in death by his parents, his first wife Faye, his

sisters Hattie Locke, Edna Schreen, Mary Margaret Cave, and Rubye

Starks, and brothers Adrian Cave, William (Tom) Cave, Woodrow

Cave, and Marcellus Cave.

Bill is survived by his wife Mary Ellen Cave of Tebbetts; his son

Rodney (Alison) Cave of Edmond, OK and daughter Rita (Arnie) Cave Shreffler

of Nixa, MO; step-daughter Kathy (Tom) Meritt of Nixa, MO, step-son

Stephen (Pam) Anderson of Springfield, MO; grandchildren Nicholas and Matthew Cave, Andrew and Mary Shreffler, Mallonee Meritt Basham, Travis Meritt, Matt

Anderson, and Sarah Anderson Walker; great grandchildren Michael

Shreffler and Josephine Basham; sisters Katy Wilson of Albuquerque, NM, Helen

Leet of Lexington, KY, Jean Dozier of Dallas, TX, and Beulah Belle

McCubbin of Clark, MO; brother Andy Ray Cave of New Bloomfield,

MO, and numerous nieces and nephews.

Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, August 16, 2019 at Debo Funeral Home in Fulton. Burial with Military Honors will follow at Callaway Memorial Gardens in Fulton. Visitation will be from 5:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. Thursday, August 15, 2019, at Debo Funeral Home in Fulton.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Dixie Christian Church or the Special Olympics both in care of Debo Funeral Home, 833 Court Street, Fulton, Missouri 65251.

online condolences may be made at www.debofuneralhome.com