Arlene L. Hampton

Arlene L. Hampton of Overland Park, KS passed away on Tuesday, July 19, 2016. Funeral services will be 2 pm on Friday, July 22nd at Kaw Prairie Community Church, 9421 Meadow View Drive, Lenexa, KS 66227. Burial in Shawnee Mission Memory Gardens, Shawnee, KS. Visitation will be 1:30-2 pm Friday at the church prior to the service. Memorial contributions are suggested to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

Born on a farm outside Clay Center, Kansas 92 years ago, the attending midwife didn’t expect 2-pound baby Arlene to live. Her mother was too stubborn and her faith was too strong to listen, so she placed her in a shoebox wrapped in cotton and kept her warm in the oven. She lived, but was so tiny that her mother’s wedding ring slipped over her elbow until she was 15-months old.

Arlene, the only daughter of Archie and Grace Hill’s four children, survived against all odds and eventually married a soldier, Tom Hampton of Fulton, Missouri. After returning from his service in WWII, they settled in Topeka KS, where Brenda and Gayla were born. In 1959 they moved to Overland Park, Kansas where they raised their girls and grandchildren on Sunday dinners and trips to the Ozarks.

Tom and Arlene were socially active through the activities of their church, Roeland Park Methodist Church, their camping club and the square dance club. The years were good to the family and as the grandchildren came, Arlene was a devoted and proud grandma of Brenda’s and Gayla’s children.

Brenda’s children, Greg and Kelly remain devoted to her as well as Gayla’s children; Leah, Avi, Solomon, Mira and Ayellet. Arlene is preceded in death by her husband Tom and Gayla’s daughter, Sari. Condolences may be left online at www.mcgilleyhoge.com. Arrangements by, McGilley & Hoge Chapel, 8024 Santa Fe Drive, Overland Park, KS 66204. (913) 642-3565.