Virginia Mary Noon

She was born June 17, 1924 in Poplar Bluff, Missouri. The fourth of eight children born to the late Ethel Vera Bouyea and Marcus Edward Jiles, she attended J. Minnie Smith elementary school, Poplar Bluff Junior High School and Poplar Bluff Senior High. She was consistently on the honor roll in high school, and with other members of her cheerleading squad wrote the words to the Poplar Bluff High School Fight Song. During her high school years, Virginia worked at a local dime store and picked up the nickname “Slap-Happy”.

Virginia eloped with Thomas Ray Noon, also of Poplar Bluff, and they were married at Trinity Lutheran Church in St. Louis. From this union they raised Thomas Roger, Randall Kelly, Roland Patrick and James Paul Noon. A first child named Joyce Ray died a few days after birth in 1942..

Following their elopement, they lived in St. Louis at various addresses until Tom was drafted. He was first stationed at Camp Robinson near St. Louis, and then eventually transferred to Ft. Leavenworth. Kansas.

During the war Virginia worked in a venetian blind factory, a facility that made bomb fuses for aircraft in St. Louis, and was a salesperson at Petrofsky’s Bakery.Following the war, she and Tom bought a home in the Village of Hillsdale in north St. Louis County. Virginia worked at Katz Drug Store in the cosmetics department and took night courses in child psychology. She was subsequently employed at J.C. Penny in Wellston, Missouri for eight years, rising to the position of store buyer for sportswear.

Virginia was very active in the Wellston Parent-Teacher Association where her children attended school as President, and served in various other offices.

She was a key person in helping to raise funds for the new Spensmar Elementary School that opened in 1957. When the family moved to Maryland Heights, she entered upon her career as child caregiver by starting a day care at Zion Lutheran Church in Maryland Heights.

Always the entrepreneur, Virginia and her husband Tom returned to Poplar Bluff in 1966 and owned and operated several businesses in succession including a Gulf Oil Service Station and the North Alice Street Grocery Store. Some years later in 1976 with their children grown, they moved to Fort Madison, Iowa, where they owned and operated the Midwest Child Care Center, which employed 23 care providers and a cook, and had an enrollment of 142 pre-school children. They retired from the business in 1985 and moved to Topeka in 1988 to live close to their son, Randall. Not content to live the traditional life in retirement, Virginia worked again as a pre-school teacher at Bright Circle Pre-School.

A career move caused Randall and Leslie to move to Clinton, Iowa, and Virginia and Thomas moved with them. While in Clinton, Thomas passed away and is buried there. After Thomas’ death, the Noon family then moved to Hiawatha, Kansas. In Hiawatha Virginia belonged to the Lutheran Women’s Bible Study Group, which she greatly enjoyed, and was an active general class ham radio operator. Her call sign was KC0CIO and she was a member of the Hiawatha Amateur Radio Club.

Virginia is survived by one sister Marcia Lieurance Wilson, four sons, Thomas/Laura), Randall/Leslie, Patrick and James/Vickie; eleven grandchildren, and ten great-grandchildren.

Virginia will be interred next to her husband in Clinton, Iowa. Other arrangements are currently pending.

Instead of flowers please donate in Virginia’s name to the Brown County Humane Society, 2393 Mallard Road, Hiawatha, Kansas, 66434 (tel: 785-742-1976). Virginia would greatly appreciate the favor.