Robert Leonard Willcoxon MD

Robert Leonard Willcoxon, MD said his final farewell on November 17, 2024. He leaves behind a legacy of love, adventure, and lifelong learning that will be cherished by all who knew him.
Born November 9, 1939 in Wichita, Kansas to Lewis and Carolyn (Goetz) Willcoxon, Robert "Bob" Willcoxon was a man with boundless curiosity and a zest for life. After graduating from St. Xavier's High School, Junction City, Kansas, in 1957, he went on to attend St. Louis University, receiving a degree in Chemistry and Biology. After graduation in 1961, Bob pursued his medical degree from Kansas University, followed by an internship and surgical residency at Mercy Hospital in Denver, Colorado, and St. Francis Hospital in Wichita, Kansas. While pursuing his residency, he also served in the Air Force Reserve from 1964 to 1970.
Bob married Dorothy Bramlage, his best friend and partner in everything, on June 1, 1964 at St. Xavier's Catholic Church in Junction City, Kansas. Bob and Dot raised a family of four, primarily in Joplin, Missouri.
From 1971 to 2011, Bob practiced General and Vascular Surgery in Joplin, Missouri at St. John's Hospital and Freeman Hospital. Bob was a Board Certified and Member of Fellow American College of Surgeons, the Jasper County Medical Society, Missouri State Medical Society, American Medical Society, and the Joplin Surgical Association. He also served as the Chief of Staff and Board Member of St. John's Hospital and as a Board Member of Freeman Hospital Governing Board. In 1990 Bob established the Trauma Department at Freeman Hospital, and served as the Director of Trauma until 2009.
In addition to his medical ventures, Bob was also heavily involved in the grocery business, developing the Food-4-Less grocery stores, with his two partners and great friends. Being business owners in Joplin inspired Bob and Dot to continue their legacy of giving by forming the Bramlage Willcoxon Family Foundation in 2017. Bob's desire was to leave things a bit better than when he came.
When he wasn't busy saving lives in the operating room, Bob was busy tending to his beloved tomato plants, reading in his study while listening to classical music, baking bread at St. Peter's Outreach House, showing his children how to sail, planting trees with the Joplin Tree Board, helping those in need at the Community Clinic, teaching his grandchildren to ski in Colorado, and preserving nature at Wildcat Glades, where he was also a Board Member. To him, each task-no matter how small-was a chance to share his wisdom and love.
A dedicated explorer, Bob traveled to dozens of countries and visited all seven continents at least once, often accompanied by close friends and family members. Bob's legacy is carried on by his wife, Dot, and four children - Debra (Fernand) Ricard, Philip (Leah) Willcoxon, Sara (Jeffrey) Tate, and Mark Willcoxon, and his sister, Carol Willcoxon Stites. He was abundantly blessed with eight grandchildren - Alexa, Samuel, Lauren, Carson, Sophia, Gustave, Andre, and Alaina - and his three great grandchildren - Luca, Graham, and Cooper. He is preceded in death by his parents and siblings, Lenora Buttram, William Willcoxon, and James Willcoxon.
At Bob's request, there will be a private family mass and burial. Should you wish to remember or honor Bob, please plant a tree or some tomatoes, read aloud to someone, or raise a glass in Bob's memory. The family requests donations be made to Community Clinic, MSSU Foundation - Willcoxon Scholars, and St. Peter's Catholic Church Outreach House. "To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die." Arrangements are under the care of Thornhill-Dillon Mortuary in Joplin, Missouri.