Doran D. Rhoads

Doran D. Rhoads, 86, passed away Tuesday, March 20, 2012 in Gainesville, Georgia. He was born July 10, 1925 in Hennessey, Oklahoma to Mark W. Rhoads and Bessie V. Snyder Rhoads. He attended Wichita High School North and Wichita High School East, and then received his Bachelor's degree from Friends University in Wichita and his Master's degree from Emporia State University in Emporia, Kansas. He served in the Navy and received an honorable discharge in 1946.He married Phyllis Colleen Smith on June 21, 1946 and raised six children. He taught math in the Wichita school system at Horace Mann and Hadley Junior High schools, then at North High school where he was also the golf coach. During the summers he was an insurance adjuster specializing in disaster claims, spending time in numerous midwestern states and assisting after Hurricanes Camille, Hugo and Andrew. Doran and Phyllis moved to Bella Vista, Arkansas when he retired from teaching, and then moved to Georgia in 2003.  Throughout his life he was an avid golfer, but also enjoyed many other outdoor activities such as fishing, camping and hiking. He and Phyllis traveled extensively, visiting all 50 states and several foreign countries. They spent four months in central Africa assisting at a missionary school. He was very active in the church at Westside Christian Church in Wichita, and Bella Vista Christian in Arkansas serving on the church boards, teaching classes and sponsoring many youth activities. Doran was preceded in death by his parents, his wife, Phyllis, his brother, Franklin (Buster) Rhoads, and two sisters, Esther Thompson and Ina (Peggy) Plagge. He is survived by one sister, Elizabeth Riner (Olathe, Kansas), six children: Daniel Rhoads (Flowery Branch, Georgia), David Rhoads (Austin, Texas), Douglas Rhoads (Fayetteville, Arkansas), Paula Rhoads (Denver, Colorado), Dustin Rhoads (Denver, Colorado), and Sandra Kleypas (Axtell, Texas). He has five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. Services will be at Westside Christian Church in Wichita, Kansas on Saturday March 31, 2012 with viewing at 11 a.m. and services at 12:30 p.m. and internment at Resthaven Cemetery in Wichita to follow. Memorials can be made in lieu of flowers to the Alzheimer's Association or The First Tee. Condolences may be offered at www.resthavenmortuary-cemetery.com.