Obituary of Dennis "Dale" Willard

Dennis Dale Willard was born at home in Carmi County, Kansas on June 18, 1930 to Dennis Benton Willard and Mahala Mable Rader Willard. He was the youngest of seven children and grew up on a truck farm in the Sand Hills of Kansas. While there was hard work on the farm, there was also fun that provided plenty of material for the stories he loved to tell. His family (and many friends) know about the Model A Ford getting stuck in the sand, black walnuts and the best tasting melons anywhere, snow that came up to roof's eaves, the bull snake and the rats, his mama's quilting frame that lifted up to the ceiling with ropes and pulleys, and using corncobs to make a sled go faster - well, to be honest, way too fast - down a slide.Dale answered to many names. When his mother hollered "Dennis Dale Willard!" he knew he was in trouble. On the phone, "Dennis" meant it was a salesperson who didn't know him. "Sweetheart" or "Precious" was Helen, the love of his life, calling him. "Daddy" was the name his first five children used. "Papa, Papa D or Papa Dale" identified his second set of five children, a sort of incentive prize accompanying Helen (marry this wonderful woman and take home five stellar children, absolutely FREE!). "Dale" was what his many friends said to catch his attention. No matter what name you used, you knew that he was kind-hearted, quiet, gentle, could fix anything, was always pleased to help, reveled in the occasional bad pun, cheerfully ate the-spicier-the-better food, had an artist's eye, enjoyed laughing, loved his family well, was musical, and most of all, was a man of God.Before he could fix anything, sing in a quartet, or be a First Free Methodist minister, he needed some schooling. He graduated from Preston Consolidated High School (Preston, Kansas, 1948) and was awarded an Associate of Arts degree by Central College in McPherson, Kansas in 1950. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Religion and Philosophy from Greenville College (Greenville, Illinois, 1952). Dale never stopped learning. He studied the Bible, memorized scripture and read to learn about a wide variety of topics. His interests ranged from how the telegraph was essentially the Victorian internet, to the experiences of female spies in World War II, to how longitude was developed and became a standard measurement. He was self-taught in other areas such as how to decode knitting patterns to help Helen navigate a thorny, yarn-y problem. He also continued his formal education by studying Mechanical Design Technology at Pikes Peak Community College (PPCC) and taking home an Associate of Applied Science degree in the subject in 1985. Dale went on to teach beginning computer use classes at PPCC.Dale married in 1954 and welcomed five children: Janelle, Bonita, Melody, Verlyn, and Jewel. After his first marriage ended, he met Helen at a First Presbyterian Church workshop and eventually convinced his precious sweetheart, Helen Puckett McKinnie Willard, to marry him in 1981. Dale instantly gained five more children: David, Carolyn, Sharon, Linda, and Thomas "Tom". He never viewed them as baggage, but as delightful additions to his life, for which they were grateful.Dale outlived his six siblings: Paul, Earl, Dorothy, Robert, Albert, and Kenneth, who died as a young child. He is survived by his wife of nearly forty-one years, Helen Puckett McKinnie Willard; and ten children; twenty-three grandchildren; twenty-five great-grandchildren; and three great-great grandchildren. His family includes Janelle Willard McCoy, her husband, Craig "Mac" McCoy, and their children, Neil, Cory, and Zachary McCoy; Bonita Willard Rinker, her husband, Bill, and children, Tina Coulter, Dawn Coulter, and Angelic Sorenson; Melody Willard Ramirez, her husband, Nebas, and their children, Dominic Ramirez, Mellora Pierce, Marissa Ramirez, and Mahalia Vargas; Verlyn Willard (deceased) and his wife, Nancy Pancner Willard, and their children, Bradley, Ryan, and Taylor Willard; Jewel Willard Klingensmith, her husband, Ray, and their children, Eric, Michelle, and Sean Klingensmith, Thomas Deaton, Joel Viliard, and Desire Klingensmith. He is also survived by Helen's children: David McKinnie and his wife, Mary Baker; Carolyn Jean McKinnie and her husband, Daniel Runge; Sharon McKinnie Bodine, her husband, Daniel Bodine, and their children, Devon and Claire; Linda McKinnie and her husband, Paul Conroy; and last, but certainly not least, Thomas "Tom" McKinnie, his wife, Jennifer Williams McKinnie, and their children, Elizabeth and William.Dale had a committed relationship with the Lord and his faith was deep and unshakeable. He grew up in a family of faith and was called to be a First Free Methodist minister for several years. He served in the Army from 1953 to 1955. The Army has a reputation for ignoring a person's talents and preferences when assigning jobs, but in Dale's case, they were spot on, as he became a Chaplain's Assistant at Camp Carson in Colorado Springs. Arguably his best memories of the Army were from attending Chaplain's Assistant school at Fort Slocum, New York. The coursework wasn't scintillating - well, maybe it was - but what he reminisced about was going to New York City on leave. As a serviceman, he got free standing-room-only tickets to classical music concerts at Carnegie Hall. Two treasured keepsakes were the programs from concerts conducted by Arturo Toscanini and Dimitri Mitropoulos in 1953. His excitement wasn't surprising as he loved music and singing from an early age. His beautiful bass voice graced several singing quartets and quintets, including The Centralians from Central College in Kansas and a quintet that traveled with the Mid-Century Youth Crusade. Dale delighted in experimenting with the electric guitar but spent far more time playing the mandolin and harmonica.His post-army career included twenty-seven years at Hewlett Packard. He began as a Tool and Die Machinist and held increasingly responsible jobs, culminating as a Computer Aided Design programmer. Immediately after retiring, Dale began a company, Your Data Valet, consulting on a variety of projects but specializing in database design and development. He "retired retired" after twelve years of consulting.Dale longed to travel the world, but when the Army didn't send him to any exciting destinations, it was up to him to fulfill this particular dream. Over time, he traveled with Helen to Switzerland, Jordan, and Israel. They also saw the famous passion play in Oberammergau, Germany. In addition, Dale made a trip to Panama where he took a private tour of the Panama Canal locks and marveled at the 1914 engineering still in use. Later in life, Dale and Helen completed a multi-month mission in Cairo, Egypt, where Dale shared his computer expertise. He also visited many of the United States, including Hawaii and Alaska, but his favorite destination was Ouray, Colorado.Dale appreciated anything with an engine: cars, motorcycles, trains, planes, spaceships, and even sump pumps. Not surprisingly, this interest in mechanics translated to the world of computers with curiosity about - and the acquisition of - the latest tech gadgets. His longest lasting interest (other than music) was photography. His spent decades honing this craft and his photographs were featured in publications such as Discipleship Journal. Dale particularly liked photographing flowers, the Garden of the Gods and Colorado's beautiful mountain vistas. He liked watching sports, including hockey, NASCAR races, tennis, the Tour de France, and golf.Dale was gentle, compassionate, and thoughtful. While soft-spoken, he had a ready laugh and thoroughly enjoyed telling a joke. He had a stellar smile - usually accompanied by a twinkle in his eye that made you think he just might be plotting some mischief. He was the best of men, and we are all privileged to have known him. Even though we are comforted with the certainty that he is at home with the Lord, he is - and will continue to be - dearly missed.Memorial Service, 11:00AM, Wednesday, June 16, 2021, First Presbyterian Church, 219 East Bijou Street, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80903.In lieu of flowers, memorial contribution in Dale's memory may be made to the Get Set Preschool at First Presbyterian Church in Colorado Springs: (www.firstprescos.org/ministries/get-set-preschool/) Events Memorial Service Wednesday, June 16, 2021 11:00AM First Presbyterian Church 219 E. Bijou Street Colorado Springs, CO 80903 Phone: 719-884-6100