Bruce Donald "Don" Varney

Bruce Donald Varney was born in Kansas City, Missouri on August 30, 1940. His father, Bruce, and mother, Barbara Lee Homes Varney, raised him in Kansas City with his three sisters, Nancy, Betsy, and Pam. Bruce, also referred to as "Don" by friends and "Pabo" by his children and grandchildren, graduated with a Journalism degree from the University of Kansas in 1962. He was a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity and married his high school sweetheart, Andrea Jane Ash, who was a Gamma Phi Beta at KU, on June 16, 1962.

Don and Andrea had five children, Christy, Amy, Robert, Brian, and Stephen. When their baby Robbie (6 months) died tragically of SIDS, it was a devastating and traumatic loss for the family. Despite this tragic death, Don and Andrea courageously continued to parent Christy, Amy, Brian, and Stephen, and all four children became Christians and good friends to each other. The family enjoyed many happy traditions including Christmas celebrations, Thanksgiving feasts, and summer vacations to Lake of the Ozarks and Colorado. Don was a sports fan closely following the Kansas City Chiefs, Kansas City Royals, and especially KU Basketball. Don was thrilled that Christy, Amy, and Brian, along with several grandchildren, followed his lead by becoming KU Jayhawks and graduating from the University of Kansas.

Don and Andrea raised their family in Prairie Village, Kansas and Don worked in sales for the family business. In 1997 Don, Andrea, and Stephen moved to the San Francisco Bay Area so Stephen could pursue his dream of becoming a concert pianist, attending the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. In the Bay Area, Don joined Habitat for Humanity East Bay/Silicon Valley as the Director of Faith Relations where he worked sacrificially to build hundreds of homes with volunteers from all different faith backgrounds. Don was greatly admired by church members and Habitat staff as he motivated people with passionate speeches and the Habitat for Humanity mission. Sadly, Don lost his beloved wife, Andrea to cancer in 2008 and his son Stephen to a heart attack in 2019, just two months after marrying Naomi Sanchez, his beloved wife and accomplished partner in music. The Pierce family was honored to have Pabo live with them for three years in their San Carlos, California home and fondly remember celebrating holidays with Pabo and enjoying vacations to Maine, Sea Island, Canada, Mexico and Alaska.

In 2019, Don moved back to the Kansas City area and lived at Tiffany Springs Senior Living Community, and he considers this one of the happiest chapters of his life. He made many great friendships there and enjoyed being an active member of the community. Don was especially grateful to have reconnected with family following his move to Kansas City, including Pam and Doug DeTray, Betsy and Don Hineman, and Nancy and Rob Ash. Don had many talents and accomplishments, but his strong faith is what friends and family admire the most about him. Forged in the fires of suffering, Don's faith shines brightly, and he often shares the hope of Christ with others. Don's children and grandchildren often ask Pabo for prayer because they know he is a prayer warrior and will be interceding for them.

Don is survived by his three children, Christy (Ben) Pierce, Amy Ritenour, Brian (Amy) Varney and daughter-in-law, Naomi Sanchez; nine grandchildren, Corey Pierce, Annie Pierce, Benji Pierce, Caleb Ritenour, Grayson Ritenour, Emma Ritenour, Claire Varney (Nathan) Grace, Anna Varney, Chase Varney; and his sisters Nancy (John) Brown, Betsy (Don) Hineman, Pam (Doug) DeTray. Our family will be forever grateful for our "Pabo", an amazing man of faith who taught us what it means to live one's life for the glory of God. We will always treasure memories with Pabo, especially around the holidays. We miss him terribly, but we thank God he is rejoicing with Jesus in heaven with no more suffering, joyfully reunited with Andrea, Robbie, Stephen, Brian Ritenour, and all of the saints who have gone before him.

A celebration of life service will be held on Friday, November 24th at 11:00 AM at White Chapel Funeral Home, 6600 NE Antioch Rd. Gladstone, MO 64119. A Visitation will begin at 10:30 AM.

The family would like thank Tiffany Springs Assisted Living and Ascend Hospice for the outstanding care and support they provided.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be directed to Habitat for Humanity East Bay/Silicon Valley