Vera was born January 18, 1919 in Pottawattamie County, Iowa as the second child of Arthur and Izetta Darrington. She grew up on a farm just outside of Council Bluffs and as a young adult worked as a bookkeeper. In the early 1950’s she moved to Kansas City, Missouri and met Eugene Beamer. They were wed on August 31st, 1955. One son, Steven, was born to them and Vera became a stay-at-home mom.
After the death of Eugene in 1995, Vera began volunteering at North Kansas City Hospital. Over the course of the next 22 years, she served over 13,000 hours at various locations in the hospital. In February of 2004, she was recognized by Ingram’s Magazine as one of the Kansas City area’s “Heros in Healthcare” for her service. She also served on the North Kansas City Parks and Recreation Board for a number of years.
Vera also enjoyed serving as a greeter at the Highlands Community of Christ church and would be the smiling face on Sunday mornings as people arrived for services. In 2016, Vera moved to the Assisted Living Unit at Linden Woods Village in Gladstone, MO. In 2018, she was the First Runner-up in the Missouri Ms. Nursing Home Beauty Pageant.
She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, her sister and brother-in-law, Joyce and Walter Glesmann, and her brother and sister-in-law, Marvin and Lois Darrington. She is survived by her son, Steven Beamer and wife Julie, her granddaughter, Lindsay Beamer, her sister, Esther Darrington, and brother and sister-in-law, Byron and Janis Darrington.
The family wants to thank the healthcare workers at Linden Wood Village for their compassion and care that they provided to Vera over the time that she was there. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Highlands Community of Christ Church.
Visitation will be 5:00 – 7:00 PM Tuesday, March 1st at the McGilley Antioch Chapel. Graveside services are 10:30 AM Wednesday, March 2nd, at Floral Hills Cemetery.
