Shirley Anne Warren was born on August 17, 1933 in Sorrel, Missouri to Iola (Vaughn) Warren and Glen Warren. She was born early after her mother chased the turkeys on the railroad tracks and the doctor said she would not live the night. Her two grandmothers tended her in a shoebox on the oven door with an eyedropper of milk and she showed her passion for life, her fighting spirit and lived. She was the middle child in her family, Fred her older brother and Eleanor her younger sister. Shirley was raised on her parents general livestock farm and loved to be outdoors more than staying inside. She enjoyed sports and riding and breaking horses. She played in the high school band, was on the basketball team and was a member of the National Honor Society. She was a talented artist and an avid reader. She had girlhood dreams of being a dress designer in Paris. Shirley worked one year with her father in the Green City MFA and then headed to Columbia to attend classes at MU. Here she met Gary Hanman again, he had been in her high school class and she had been good friends with his older sister Mary Jo, they had all grown up in neighboring communities. Gary and Shirley were married on August 16, 1953 while they were both still attending school at MU. She worked to put him through both of his college degrees. Vicky Lea was born in 1954 and three more children followed, Sandra Jeanne 1957, Cynthia Kaye 1960 and Theodore Edwin 1961. Shirley raised her family in Columbia, St. Louis, Highland Illinois, Springfield and Marshfield Missouri. She was most proud that each of her children have a strong Christian faith. She held several jobs in bookkeeping and typing, worked in a flower shop and was church secretary in the Marshfield and Platte City United Methodist Churches. She was a keen supporter of opportunities for girls and worked tirelessly to start a high school girl’s basketball team in Marshfield and open a professional daycare at the church, which is still serving the Marshfield community today. When her children were grown, Shirley opened her home to several foster children and cared for them. She also went back to university and pursued her degree in Art, English and writing. She had dreams of publishing children's books and loved to write short stories. She was active in many volunteer roles, especially the Marshfield Red Cross Blood Drives, vote counting as an election official and meals on wheels. Shirley opened and ran a travel agency for several years, this gave her the chance to help others and enjoy traveling the world, something she had always dreamed of doing through her reading and passion for the arts. She loved to play bridge, keep horses, attend the races in Hot Springs, Arkansas and play the piano. Shirley was a tower of strength to Gary as his responsibilities grew in his work for the dairy industry. Always by his side in MidAm, and Dairy Farmers of America, she was a charming partner for Gary, friendly and well loved by all. They traveled widely together, moved home seven times and she was the rock in his success. Shirley was a very active grandmother and a big part of all eight of her grandchildren's lives. She always championed them and made sure she provided for their early years and college education. She will be deeply missed by Matthew, Tyler, Anne, Amanda, Peter, Ian, Michael and Lydia. Shirley was strong in her faith from her early days at church camp, through her long illness, to her recent passing. She was a lifelong member of the Methodist church, where she devoted her time and talents to her church family and her community. She was at peace and ready to be with her Lord. A visitation will be held 3:00 – 5:00 p.m., Thursday, December 14, 2017 at the United Methodist Church of Platte City, MO; followed by a 5:00 memorial service at the church. Dinner will follow at 6:00 p.m. Inurnment will follow at the Enterprise Cemetery in Browning, MO 12:00 p.m., Friday, December 15.
Thursday, December 14, 2017
5:00 PM