Butterfield Residential Care Center's Butterfield Express February 2020

Butterfield
EXPRESS
Volume 31, Issue 2
February 2020
Butterfield Residential Care Center is an affiliate of CMH, Bolivar, Mo., 417-326-6000
Facility Location: 1120 N. Butterfield Rd., Bolivar, MO 65613, 417-326-5200
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
Resident of the Month 1
Activity Photos 2
Upcoming Events 3
Residents’ Birthdays 4
New Residents 4
Discharges 4
Happy
Valentine’s
Day!
from,
all of us at
Butterfield
Juanita Carlisle,
Resident of the Month
Juanita “Nita” Carlisle was born in the panhandle of western
Oklahoma just south of the Kansas line July 8, 1928. Her parents,
Harry and Gladyce Dorris, moved about 350 miles from the east (near
the Great Salt Plains) to the area in a covered wagon. Leaving on Jan.
1, 1916, it took them about 14 days. At first they did not have a
house and lived in a dugout! Both of Nita’s grandfathers were in the
Cherokee Strip Land Run in 1893 and claimed land in Oklahoma, that
once belonged to the Cherokee.
Nita was the youngest of five children and they all attended a one
-room school. Nita completed both the first and second grades in the
same school year! During that time the area became tragically affect-
ed by the Dust Bowl. Nita remembers the dust being so thick that a
person could not see out of the windows of the house. Because of the
dust storms, Nita’s parents decided to move near Byron, Oklahoma,
where Nita attended school and graduated from high school with a
class of 12 in 1945. During her high school years she became her
dad’s farmhand and helped with plowing, mowing, combining, etc.,
when her brothers enlisted in the U.S. Army during WWII.
In fall 1945, Nita began attending Northwestern State Teacher’s
College in Alva, Oklahoma. It was during this time that she met her
future husband, Winfield Robert “Bob” Carlisle. WWII was ending
and Bob had been discharged from the U.S. Marines. They met on a
blind date and then Bob enrolled in the same college as Nita at the
second semester.
Nita and Bob were married Aug. 25, 1946. Nita did clerical work
for the Department of Welfare and Bob made concrete blocks while
they continued their studies. Bob transferred to the University of
Oklahoma in Norman in 1947, and the couple moved to the area. Nita
began working at Ozman & Sons Wholesale Grocers in Oklahoma City
as a secretary. Bob and Nita bought their first land purchase during
this time near Lamar, Colorado. The couple raised wheat crops and
spent the first summer living in a tent, and the next in a Quonset
hut, on their property while harvesting the wheat.
Nita and Bob were blessed with four children, Kay, Mack, Linda
and Anita. Bob graduated from O.U. in 1950, with a B.S. in Civil
Engineering. They lived in Redfield and Moran, Kansas, where Bob
worked as an engineer and supervised construction of a sewer line
before moving and working a year in Independence, Missouri. Then
the couple moved to a farm near Blue Mound, Kansas where they
farmed and raised Polled Hereford cattle. Bob worked as the City
Engineer for Fort Scott.
In 1957, the family moved back to Independence where Bob was
employed by Harvey Jones Engineering Firm and worked on several
engineering projects for Jackson County. Bob was involved in creat-
ing the Blue Ridge Mall and Independence Center, as well as the
development of Blue River Valley. Nita worked for a period of
time at Gleaner Harvester’s before focusing all her time and
attention on raising her children. All four children graduated
from Truman High School and continued on to college. Nita
worked many years as an election judge.
In 1984, after Bob retired, the couple moved to Wheat-
land, Missouri, where they built a home and a “little lake.”
They enjoyed lots of fishing, gardening and horseback riding
and were charter members of the Pomme De Terre Methodist
Church. Nita enjoyed aerobics classes, line dancing and
church activities. She also worked several more years at
elections. Their home and “little lake” continues to be
enjoyed by their family and relatives today. Nita and Bob
celebrated almost 55 years of marriage before Bob passed
away in 2001. Later, Nita developed a close relationship with
a dear church friend, Glenn Ford. They were fortunate to
share 12 years of companionship before he passed away and
Nita has remained close to his daughters.
Today, Kay and Mike Kassen live in Shawnee, Kansas;
Mack and Diana live near Blue Mound, Kansas; Linda and
Steve Marshall live in Bolivar; and Anita and Bob Kriensky
live in Boca Raton, Florida. Nita has seven grandchildren and
15 great-grandchildren.
Nita moved to Butterfield in 2018 and actively partici-
pates in daily chair exercises, bingo, outings, games, music
and much more. Her positivity and kindness are a blessing to
everyone. We are thrilled to have her as part of our Butter-
field family. Thank you for sharing your story with us Nita!
Are you a caring individual who would like to assist in caring for the elderly?
Butterfield Residential Care Center has opportunities in its volunteer program.
For more information call Tammie Callaway, BRCC administrator, at 417-328-6380.