Wanda Verle Wycoff, age 102, of Cheyenne, Wyoming, passed away peacefully on
Saturday, June 26, 2021, at the Cheyenne Regional Medical Center,
Cheyenne, WY.
Wanda Verle Challis was born on November 21, 1918, in rural Washington County, (near Cope), Colorado to Gail and Etta
Challis, the second of five children.
Wanda spent her adolescent
years on the family farm in nearby Kit Carson County, Colorado until the
family moved to a farm in Logan County, Kansas in 1928. Wanda attended
Russell Springs High School and graduated in 1936. As a young woman
growing up during the Great Depression, Wanda learned the values of
frugality, hard work, and being self-sufficient. She loved reading
(often burning the midnight oil), playing piano, participating in school
sports and activities, and helping the family on their farm.
In
1937, Wanda and Raymond L. Wycoff were married by the Justice of the
Peace at the Scott County Courthouse in Scott City, Kansas. While
living in Russell Springs, five children were born. Bonnie Gayle, Dina
Rae, Ellen Louise, Willetta June (Billie), and Raymond Alva.
In
1948, the family moved to Oakley, Kansas where all of Wanda’s children
attended Oakley Public Schools. Wanda was involved in the children’s
school activities as well as being a member of Oakley Garden Club, the
United Methodist Church, and an avid bowler on State Championship teams.
In
1970, Wanda moved to Cheyenne, Wyoming to begin a new chapter in her
life. She worked in retail clothing, then earned her real estate and
insurance licenses, and spent 17 years working in the clerical
department at Depaul Hospital, where she retired in 1998.
Wanda
was a long-time member of the Cheyenne Symphony Orchestra, loved playing
bridge and golf, sewing, and most of all, hosting family re-unions.
Family was her life! Wanda often traveled to Kansas, visiting her
family in Oakley – the place she always called “hometown”.
After
retirement, Wanda spent her remaining years at her home on Willow Drive,
enjoying her flower and vegetable garden and spending time with family
and friends.
Wanda was preceded in death by her parents, Gail and
Etta; her siblings: Rodell Challis, Stanley Challis, June Challis, and
Evelyn Trutanich; her husband, Raymond Wycoff, her daughter, Billie
Miller; granddaughter, Amy Broyles, great-grandson, Nick Moeder, and
sons-in-law: Jack Thomas and Larry Dinkel.
Wanda is survived by
her children: Bonnie Tobin of Colchester, Vermont; Dina Dinkel of
Oakley, Kansas; Ellen Thomas of Cheyenne, Wyoming; and Raymond Wycoff
(Virginia Adradna) of Cheyenne, Wyoming; 16 grandchildren, 26
great-grandchildren, 7 great-great-grandchildren, and son-in-law, Sonny
Miller of Ft. Collins, Colorado.
Wanda was a vibrant, active,
warm, family-loving soul – always there to lend a hand and a shining
example of The Golden Rule. She will be missed.
Funeral Service
will be 2:00 p.m., Saturday, July 3, 2021 at Kennedy-Koster Funeral
Home, Oakley. Visitation: 5:00 to 9:00 p.m. on Friday, July 2, at the
funeral home. Interment will be in the Oakley Cemetery. Memorials may
be made to the Cheyenne Symphony or the Butterfield Trail Historical
Museum in care of Kennedy-Koster Funeral Home, P.O. Box 221, Oakley, KS
67748.
Sign the online guestbook at www.kennedykosterfh.com