Rita Adkisson
Rita Elaine Adkisson, age 75, of Grand River, Iowa, the daughter of William Dean and and Marjorie Marie (Boord) Fear, was born on April 11, 1948, at Leon, Iowa. She died at Westview Acres in Leon, Iowa on Wednesday, May 3, 2023.
Rita graduated in 1966 from Mount Ayr High School in Mount Ayr, Iowa. She attended AIB in Des Moines, Iowa for two years. On November 1, 1969, she was united in marriage to Michael Allen Adkisson. They were blessed with two sons, Monte and Douglas.
They started out their married life in Altus, Oklahoma while Mike was in the Air Force and stationed there. Upon his discharge they moved to Grand River, Iowa, where they farmed until 1984. After that they moved to Jefferson, South Dakota, Sheldon, Iowa, and Afton, Iowa, where Mike worked as a substance abuse counselor. They retired back in Grand River in 2012. In addition to being a wife and mother, Rita worked as a certified nurses assistant for several different nursing homes and operated her own house cleaning business while in Sheldon. Being with her family was most important to Rita. She loved having meals together, visiting with them, hearing her granddaughters talk about their future plans, and seeing the newest great grandbaby. She enjoyed baking and always had an apple or pecan pie ready to serve. She really enjoyed her walks around Grand River, watching the birds, and filling their feeders and baths. Even though she didn’t think she had a green thumb, she loved planting and maintaining many flowers and shrubs in her yard. She especially enjoyed the annual trip to Yutzy’s Greenhouse with her sister, Ginny, to shop for the plants. Rita loved to bargain shop at thrift stores and was always on the look out for another glass hen on a nest bowl. She loved her collection of vintage glass hen on a nest bowls.
Preceding her in death was her father, William Fear; mother and step-father, Marjorie and Myrle Reasoner; father-in-law, Ernest Adkisson; two sisters, Mardean McCutchen and Carol Evans; and brothers-in-law, Rodney Evans, Allen Young, and Kermit McCutchan.
Survivors include her husband of 54 years, Mike Adkisson of Grand River, Iowa; sons, Monte Adkisson and wife, Roxanne and Doug Adkisson and friend, Joy McCoy, all of Warrensburg, Missouri; four granddaughters, Ashley Adkisson and fiance, Jake Robertson, Katelyn Adkisson, both of Warrensburg, Kaylie Keckler and husband, Ryan of Stillwater, Oklahoma, and Nicole Adkisson of Warrensburg; two great granddaughters, Aurora and Amelia Keckler and their sister, Autumn, expected soon; sister, Ginny Young of Grinnell, Iowa; step-sisters, Cindy Cavender and husband, Dean of Nevada, Iowa and Karen Cope and husband Gene of Longmont, Colorado; step-brother, Bob Reasoner and wife, Louise of Chillicothe, Missouri; mother-in-law, Betty Adkisson of Leon, Iowa; sisters-in-law, Patty Adams and husband, Mike of Weatherford, Oklahoma and Peggy Mothershead and husband, Terry of Grand River; brother-in-law, Dennis Adkisson and wife, Suzanne of Grand River; many nieces and nephews; and other relatives and many friends.
A memorial service will be held at the Slade – O’Donnell Funeral Home in Leon, Iowa at 10 a.m. Friday, May 19, 2023. Burial will be in the Grand River Cemetery, Grand River, Iowa.
The memorial fund is to the Grand River Community Center in Rita’s memory.
