Daniel Dean Dole

May 13, 1949 - December 18, 2020

In the light of the Christmas tree, and surrounded by his family who adored him, Daniel Dean Dole, 71, went to heaven on December 18, 2020. He was the first of two ornery sons born to Naomi (Doss) and Leroy Dole on May 13, 1949, and the world was never the same. At the age of 19, “Danny” was a communications specialist for the Navy and stationed inland in Vietnam. He would tell you that he was one of the “Bad Luck Bastards of Ben Luc Bay”. The effects of Agent Orange affected his health for the remainder of his life, and our family is incredibly proud of the sacrifice that he, and those like him, made for this country. In 1986, he reconnected with his childhood friend and high school sweetheart, Diane, and they married and spent the last 34 years of his life together on their farm in Dekalb, Missouri. They also fulfilled his lifelong dream to own a cabin at Lake of the Ozarks. Dan and Diane spent many happy hours at Coffman Cove with family. It is where he taught his grandchildren to fish and took them out on his boat to check the trotline. Many stories about Dan will become family legends. He was the ultimate prankster and he loved to laugh. For example, there was a time in high school when he and a friend faked a UFO sighting, and after being published on the front page of the local newspaper, they were separated and questioned for hours by the F.A.A., yet never gave up their secret. Or there was the time that he was a patient at Saint Luke’s Hospital, and he took his beloved “fart machine” with him. He was seen on a security camera planting it under a bench outside of his room. Security thought it was a bomb, and once again he was subjected to questioning. (This is why we never took him to airports.) Also, he would want you to know that he could have played in the NBA, but he was never asked. His legacy lives on in many ways, but he would tell you without hesitation that the greatest role of his lifetime was being “Papa Dan” to his grandchildren. If you have ever spoken with him, you probably know them all by name, and that they are the most brilliant, talented, gifted, and clever human beings ever born. We regret to inform you that no, they do not actually walk on water. But he thought that they did. He always had a pocketful of tootsie rolls to share at football games, and a funny quip in the stands at their hockey, baseball, and basketball games. And much to everyone’s surprise, he never actually did get thrown out of a game. He is survived by his wife, Diane, his children; Cliff (Jill) Dole of Poquoson, Virginia, Heidi Dole of Hutchinson, Kansas, Cori (Johnny) Ingram of Basehor, Kansas, Adam (Michelle) Heffley of McLouth, Kansas, nine grandchildren; Jordon, Brody, Aidan, Ava, Cooper, Rex, Abraham, Oscar, and Quinn; his brother Dave (Margie) Dole of Parker, Colorado, and many nieces and nephews who loved him dearly. He will forever live on in our hearts and our memories until we are reunited with him again.