Tracy Lynn Wilt

Tracy Lynn Wilt, 61, of Liberty Missouri, passed away peacefully at home on October 17th after a short battle with pancreatic cancer. Tracy was born on July 27th,1964 in Independence, Missouri, the daughter of Jerry and Janet Reed. She was the middle child between two wonderful siblings: Kathy Hallberg & Robert Reed.
Tracy graduated from Truman High School in 1982 and went on to attend college at the University of Missouri. While at Mizzou, she was a member of the Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority and received a Bachelor of Health Science in Occupational Therapy. Tracy also met her husband, Phil, at Mizzou. Tracy reluctantly agreed to be Phil's date to his spring party, but spent most of the evening hiding in the bathroom due to suspicious "contact lens issues". After the party, Tracy finally agreed to a formal date and the rest was history.Tracy and Phil married in 1987 and recently celebrated their 37th wedding anniversary. Tracy always expressed how lucky she was to be married to her best friend.
Tracy had two children, Austin and Megan, and believed being a mom was what God made her for. She was the best mom and continuously showed up for her kids and let them know how loved and special they were until the very end.
Professionally, Tracy started her career in Occupational Therapy and later became a preschool teacher for 3 & 4 year-olds at Hilltop Preschool. She taught for 20 years until her cancer diagnosis in early 2025. She absolutely loved being a preschool teacher and was devastated when she had to stop teaching. Regardless of where she worked, her career was always centered around caring for others.
Tracy was also a faithful volunteer at Hope Church (formerly North Heartland Community Church) for 26 years, and served as a small group leader and Hope Kids Elementary Coordinator alongside Phil. She led countless children to Jesus and had the privilege of watching many of her small group kids get baptized.
Tracy had many things that brought her joy over the years. She loved vacationing at the beach with her family and made many memories reading in the sun, hunting for seashells, and playing paddle ball with the family (where the famous phrase "Tracy takes a tumble" was coined). She enjoyed spending time at her family's lake house at the Lake of the Ozarks, making special memories with those she loved most. Their days at the lake were full of trips in the boat to Jolly Rogers, taking wave runner rides, laying on the lily pad, tie-dying, making homemade ice cream, and watching Phil & Austin shoot off fireworks on the Fourth of July. Tracy also loved planting flowers in the spring and fall, cooking for her loved ones, reading, puzzling with her family, cuddling with her dog, Milo, and taking part in special family traditions like fondue around Christmas time.
Most importantly, Tracy was a devoted follower of Jesus and modeled that in all aspects of her life. She raised her children to know and love Jesus and impacted countless others by leading prayer groups for moms and volunteering on the Hope Church prayer team. If you were in Tracy's life, you can be confident that she was praying for you over the years. She handled her cancer diagnosis with strength and bravery and leaned on prayer for comfort. One of her favorite verses comes from Philippians 4:6, which says "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God". Though she is no longer physically with us, we know that she is in the arms of the Lord in a healed and pain-free body.
Anyone who knew her knew that she was the best wife, mom, daughter, sister, friend, teacher, and mentor. These few paragraphs don't begin to touch on the legacy she leaves behind, but those in her circle know what a gem Tracy was. She was kind, caring and always willing to listen and help a friend in need. She is irreplaceable and will be missed daily but we have faith that we will be reunited with her again.
Remaining to cherish Tracy's memory are husband Phil Wilt; children Austin Wilt (Hayley) and Megan Strzelecki (Darrick); parents Jerry & Janet Reed; siblings Kathy Hallberg & Robert Reed (Lumi); brother-in-laws Leslie Wilt (Kelly) & Gary Wilt (Sara); nieces and nephews Abby Hallberg, Charlie Reed, Margot Reed, Kelsey McGee (Willy), Craig Wilt, Jody Veale (Lucas), Rusty Copenhaver (Angie), Tim Copenhaver (Susan), Danny Copenhaver (Holly), Nathan Wilt (Annabelle), Adam Wilt (Becky), Luke Wilt (Stephanie), and Joseph Wilt. Tracy was welcomed into heaven by her grandparents: Catherine & Woodrow Vaughan and Mabel & Bill Reed; mother and father-in-law Dorcey & Wayne Wilt; sister and brother-in-law Carol & Ronnie Copenhaver, and many other cherished relatives and friends.
A visitation will be held at Hope Church (4800 NW 88th St, KC MO 64154) from 4-6 PM on Wednesday, October 22nd with a Celebration of Life at 6 PM and a reception to follow. A graveside burial service will be held on Thursday, October 23rd at the Shelbina Cemetery (103 S Burlington St, Shelbina MO 63468) at 2:30 PM. All are welcome to celebrate Tracy's life with her family and friends.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial gifts be made in Tracy's honor to Hope Church at: https://hopekc.churchcenter.com/giving or
Hope Church
4800 NW 88th St
Kansas City, MO