Bonnie Gale Wycoff, age 73, of Kansas City, MO., passed away on Sun. Sept. 3rd, 2017. A Celebration of Bonnie’s life will be 11am Sat. Sept. 9th at the Edwardsville Christian Church. Memorial Contributions can be made to the church.

Bonnie Gale Wycoff died a warrior, in her 74th year. Gale was Born Nov. 24, 1943 at Providence Hospital in Kansas City, KS., to Robert Fishbaugh, Seaman Second Class USN and his young war-bride Bonnie May Skinner, who gave birth to three Children with Gale the Oldest, Susie next, then Bobby. These Three children Lost their mom early in life and received another wonderful Mom Named Irena.

Gale graduating from Bonner Springs High School, and later went to work at Yellow freight, where at 98 lbs and just 5'2” she became the first female Dock Manager, educating the drivers she knew all the laws of hauling and properly securing freight as well as being well versed in 'Union' rules, winning every labor contest. It was here she met the love of her life and married James Strode, a member of the US Air Force working as an investigator in CIS. In time; Gale began working with 'Jim” for the Criminal Investigation Service because no one would expect this cute little thing to be a private investigator, let alone working for the USAF.

She enjoyed several years of this adventure, when after many failures to conceive a child, was able to carry their only son full term. He too was named James, but because he always wanted to follow them wherever they went, he would scoot along after them to get the nick name 'scooter' Strode. This was a wonder child, and the family grew strong and loving. (I never grew tired in hearing the tales of Jim and Scooter) I believe it was Gales mother Irena, who said of the new born child; “This is an old soul Gale. Love him as much as you can; You won't have him for long.” Tragically a car accident involving all three; ended with Husband and Son instantly killed, and Gale had to bury them both on Scooters seventeenth birthday.

It was a devastating long period of readjustment. Lots of medication and grief-group meetings that finally aided her; until a Veteran Medic of the Korean War applied where she was now office manager of a well establish detective agency. This began a marriage lasting over twenty years to Charles Wycoff, an Army and later US Coast Guard Corpsman and former Paramedic-Fireman for Lee's Summit,Missouri, who wrote the only argument for passage of Missouri's Paramedic Bill, resulting in getting appointed Director of Health Services, to build the Paramedic Rescue Service for Raytown, Missouri, Sadly, Gale's kidneys finally failed after a decade or more, due to toxic shock from all the heavy medication during her grief period years earlier.

With her husbands medical training, they were able to do Home Dialysis for another ten years before Gale contracted the rare disease Calciphylaxis; ending that heroic battle; when Gale valiantly accepted God's will on Memorial-day Weekend. We will remember.