Douglas John Wolters, 74, of Atwood, KS, died Saturday, April 23, 2022, at the Good Samaritan Center, Atwood.
A visitation will be held Friday, April 29, 2022, from 5 to 7 p.m. at
Baalmann Mortuary, Atwood. Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m.,
Saturday, April 30, at Redeemer Lutheran Church, Atwood. Burial will
follow in Fairview Cemetery, Atwood. Memorials may be made to God’s
Little Saints Preschool or Rawlins County Hospital and sent in care of
Baalmann Mortuary, P.O. Box 391, Colby, KS, 67701.
Douglas John Wolters was born October 17, 1947 in St. Francis, Kansas,
the first child of Clarence John and Dorothy (Schmidt) Wolters.
Doug was baptized at the Trinity Lutheran Church parsonage north of
Ludell by his maternal grandfather, Pastor John Schmidt. Doug was later
confirmed in the Lutheran faith at Grace Lutheran Church in Atwood.
Doug later became a member of Redeemer Lutheran Church, Atwood.
Doug attended the Queen of Driftwood Country School, District 96,
located nine miles north and a mile west of Atwood, first through eighth
grades, walking the 1.5 miles in good weather. He then attended Atwood
Community High School, graduating with the class of 1965, the largest
in its history. Doug attended Kansas State University, Manhattan,
earning a bachelor’s degree in Animal Science in January, 1970. He was a
member of Beta Sigma Psi Lutheran fraternity at KSU. Doug enlisted in
the National Guard, serving from January to May of 1970, followed by six
years on reserve status.
In his last semester at KSU, Doug met Pattie Lucille Bohn, of Eskridge,
Kansas. On December 27, 1970, Pattie and Doug were united in marriage at
First Lutheran Church in Manhattan, KS. They returned to the family
farm and dairy in Atwood, residing at the Rosie Reuber farm four miles
north of Atwood. In May, 1978, they moved into the new home across the
road from the family farm, which they had constructed themselves with
some assistance from family.
Doug and Pattie welcomed their first son, Joshua John, on December 4th,
1973. Their second son, Matthew Wyatt, was born November 19, 1979.
In 1993, they became sole owners of Wolters Farms, Inc. In the fall of
1995, the dairy herd was sold. Doug and Pattie continued to grow grain
crops on the farm, spanning a total of 50 years actively farming until
transitioning the farm to the next generation.
Doug was actively involved in his community, church and agricultural
organizations. He served as Elder of Grace Lutheran Church and
President, Trustee and Elder of Redeemer Lutheran Church. Boards he
served on include Atwood Coop & Equity, Lutheran Church Missouri
Synod-Kansas District, Rawlins County Extension Council (he was chairman
for several years), and Co-Bank. Along with Pattie, Doug served as a
4-H community leader and was a member of Atwood FFA backers, though he
was never a member of 4-H or FFA in his youth.
He was preceded in death by his parents and brother-in-law Edward Schmidtke.
Survivors include his wife, Pattie, of the home; sons and
daughters-in-law, Joshua Wolters (Lisa) and Matthew Wolters (Donelle),
all of Atwood; grandchildren Ryan Wolters and Kaitlyn Wolters,
Manhattan, KS, Henry Wolters and Elise Wolters of Atwood; sibling,
Richard Wolters (Cathy), Liberal, KS, Beverly Schmidtke, Morristown, MN,
Mark Wolters (Brenda), Atwood, and John Wolters (Jo) of Manhattan, KS;
and many nieces and nephews.