Obituary of Warren Reid Stockton

Warren Reid Stockton, of Stilwell, Kansas, and more recently of Elgin, SC - devoted husband and father, went home to be with the Lord on Sunday, March 19, 2023. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife of 63 years, Patricia; and is survived by children Erik Stockton (Sharon), Dave Stockton (Jan) and Diana Motlong (Blake); his grandchildren Vicki Bartholomew (Brian), Bryan Stockton (Kate), Ashley Erbe, Brad Stockton, Kelly Stockton, Jordan Motlong (Camille) and Taylor Motlong; and his great grandchildren MacKenzie and Noah Loeb and Easton Bartholomew.

Warren graduated with a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology in 1954 and went on to serve in the US Army, Corp of Engineers, and subsequently worked for US Steel, Collins Radio and finished his dream career with over 25 years at Burlington Northern Railroad retiring as Director of Operations Research. Warren met the love of his life on a ski trip and after a whirlwind romance, they started their family and settled in Minneapolis until he was transferred to Kansas in 1983. Dad enjoyed introducing his family to skiing, hiking and boating with a 21 foot Luger cabin cruiser that he built in the garage during a Minnesota winter. Weekends on the St. Croix River and summer vacations towing the boat to Door County, WI and Split Rock, MN were highlights for all of us. Warren was a talented craftsman at whatever project he tackled: just to name a few things he built -

Heathkit TV, stereo speakers, craftsman style furniture, and a family room sized HO scale model railroad that he built completely from scratch over a 20-year period. For example, the Pullman cars he built amongst his last projects had one hundred man-hours in each car. His final big project was building an audiophile-grade tube type phono preamp to play his vinyl records in SC. Dad loved the Kansas City Symphony and truly loved listening to his music collection. He loved being an usher with his friends at Atonement Lutheran Church and had a fantastic group of neighbors in Stilwell, KS. Warren moved to South Carolina in August of last year and it was a gift to get those 7 months with him and give him a whole new chapter with family. He loved bird-watching, crossword puzzles, happy hours with neighbors and his new little bichon buddy Franklin. Dad peacefully went home to the Lord and his beloved wife just after being told about his grandson’s wedding the night before.

A Celebration of Life Service will be held at 10:00 am on Friday, May 19, 2023 at Atonement Lutheran Church, at 9948 Metcalf, Overland Park, KS 66212. His final resting place will be with his beloved wife at Leavenworth National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Atonement Lutheran Church or the Metropolitan Lutheran Ministry.

South Carolina Cremation Society is assisting the family. Family and friends may sign the online guest book by clicking on the “Tribute Wall” tab above.