Laura Neva Harrison was born in Chicopee, Missouri near Van Buren, September 9, 1912, and died on August 15, 2012. When Neva was seven, her family moved to Springfield where she later married John Harrison on August 20, 1933, gave up her office job, and dedicated the rest of her life to being a wife, mother, grandmother, and homemaker. Neva loved life and could be mischievous. On one of their dates, she gave John the laxative Feen-A-Mint and told him it was gum. When son David was eight and wanted to make a corncob pipe, Neva helped him make two, then packed them with Folgers coffee grounds. John found them giggling and trying to blow caffeinated smoke rings. Neva's themed parties for dozens of guests made you want to be on the invitation list. She made friends wherever she went, sent birthday and get well cards by the dozens, and composed long letters in couplets. In 1945, John and two partners started a concrete block manufacturing company: Glenstone Block Company. That same year Neva helped start a hot lunch cafeteria at Oak Grove Elementary School. She served on the block company's board for thirty years and on numerous other boards and committees. Neva loved music. She liked to dance and had a beautiful soprano voice. From the time she was a girl she sang in choral ensembles and church choirs. In her 70s, she took up painting and was talented but didn't have time to continue because she and John were busy traveling the world. They visited more than forty countries. At 80, she took a hot air balloon ride. When Neva was 89, she took her family on a trip to Florida, the first of eleven annual vacations. On that adventure, she went parasailing. "We're making memories," she liked to say. At 95, she amazed her family by sharing a sheaf of poetry that no one knew she had been writing since 1933. The poems were printed and bound into a book. Neva died at peace. She was preceded in death by John, three sisters and one brother. She is survived by son David Harrison and his wife Sandy; daughter Jule Egleston; granddaughter Robin Williams and her husband Tim; grandson Jeff Harrison and his wife Jennifer; grandson Jon Egleston and his wife Sarah; great-granddaughter, Alexis Egleston; great-grandsons Kris and Tyler Williams; and five nieces and nephews. Funeral service will be held at Gorman-Scharpf Brentwood Chapel on Friday, August 17, 2012 at 2:00 PM followed by graveside service at Maple Park Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Forsyth Hometown Radio Station Dr. Mary King Long Scholarship Fund P O Box 701, Forsyth, MO 65653.
