Arthur Clayton Whitaker

Art was born to Mildred and Delmar Whitaker on November 19, 1939, in Kansas City, MO.

While in High School he worked as a drafter for Black & Veatch and was serving on weekends in the Army Reserves until graduating from high school. He then continued working for Black and Veatch as a drafter & design technician and retired after 45 years.

In 1967 he began attending Southside Christian Church, where he met Nancy Yeisley. They were married in 1968 after a brief courtship. He was an active member in church and drove the church bus for the bus ministry to pick up kids on Sunday mornings (Johnson County Christian Church/Legacy). He also sang in the choir (Southside) and taught an adult Sunday school class (JCCC), helped with the church puppet ministry group (Olathe Christian Church) and enjoyed helping build and fix things around the church (JCCC and OCC). He was also an active member of the O.W.L.S. (Older Wiser Loving Seniors) group at OCC for several years.

Activities he enjoyed with his family were camping trips, weekend trips to the lake, coaching and going to his kids’ games and school activities. He was also very skilled in woodworking and enjoyed refinishing antiques and building custom furniture for friends and family. He was also very willing to help neighbors and friends whenever he saw a need.

Art lived with COPD for several years and passed away on June 27, 2022, following a 3-month battle with pneumonia and respiratory failure.

Art is survived by his wife Nancy, daughter Diana West (Jarrod), daughter Debbie Scott (Ursa), daughter Sandra Peterson and son Stephen Whitaker (Jen), 12 grandchildren, and 5 great-grandchildren.

Visitation will be from 10am – 11am at Olathe Christian Church on July 30, 2022, 1115 S Ridgeview Rd, Olathe, KS 66062. A memorial service will be immediately following the visitation. For questions about memorial contributions please send a message on Facebook to Debbie Scott, or call 816-716-4853.