William Dwaine Fleshman

William Dwaine Fleshman, age 90, passed away on Thursday, May 29, 2025, at Putnam County Memorial Hospital. He was born September 6, 1934, in Lucerne, Missouri, the son of Wayne and Nellie (Miller) Fleshman.
William rode his horse to the Grant country school in his younger years and graduated from Unionville High School with the Class of 1952. He was the President of his senior class and had the distinction of being the first person in Putnam County to receive the FFA American Farmer Degree, which was later achieved by his son, Phil, and grandsons, Kyle and Brady. At the time he received this honor, only one member in every 1,000 achieved this distinction and the state of Missouri was entitled to only eleven members. He was President of the local FFA chapter and a member of a national champion FFA livestock judging team. He won many awards with his Angus cattle and hogs at the Putnam County Fair, later instilling those same values in his children, supporting their livestock showing careers in their youth. The Unionville High School yearbook in 1953 was dedicated to William for making a name for himself in agriculture.
William was united in marriage to Lois Hall on April 8, 1956, in Unionville, Missouri. They celebrated 65 years of marriage prior to Lois's passing on February 4, 2022. To this union, three children were born: Greg, Phil, and Sharla.
William is survived by his children Greg (Anna) Fleshman, Phil (Chris) Fleshman, and Sharla (Mark) Stogdill. Nine grandchildren: Lynn (Jenka) Korman, Tyler (Lindsey) Fleshman, Kyle (Brook) Fleshman, Brady (Kara) Fleshman, Kasey Knight, Nick Stogdill, Boaz (Skylar) Fleshman, Jude Watt, and Angstrom Watt. He was Grandpa Great to nine great-grandchildren: Emmitt and Bayler Fleshman, Lily and Leighton Fleshman, Parker and Crew Fleshman, Jenson and Ben Korman, and Wren Fleshman. His brother, James Fleshman, and many nieces and nephews also survive.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Lois, his parents, Wayne and Nellie, and his sister, Ruth Dove.
William attended the First Christian Church in Unionville and accepted the Lord as his Savior on March 15, 2025.
William was a farmer through and through. His love of the land ran deep in his veins and he talked of how his land was a part of him. Genesis 3:19 "By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are, and to dust you will return." William was not a stranger to hard work, spending countless hours of labor on his land and with his cattle. Even at age 90, he never wanted to retire or leave the only way of life he ever knew. He was known far and wide for having top quality cattle and was jokingly accused of wasting more hay than most people fed to make sure his animals were well kept. He loved calving season and seeing baby calves running around with their tails in the air. His favorite season though was harvest, when he could reap the rewards of planting his crops and watching them grow. Clear up to his last days, he talked about farming with anyone that came to visit him, asking them how many calves they had and if they had started planting corn. William saw many advances in farming throughout his lifetime, from using horses to satellite controlled equipment. His beloved International Harvester tractors were a source of great pride. For many years, he participated in local tractor pulls and pulled the sled back to the starting line in the days of manual sleds. He enjoyed taking his collection of antique tractors to the Putnam County Fair each year, where former hired hands, sons, grandsons, and his son-in-law would shine them up and drive them in the parade. Everyone knew William and William knew everybody. When you went anywhere with him, you felt like you were with a celebrity by all the people who surrounded him. William served on the Board of Directors of Farmers Bank for over thirty years, a role he thoroughly enjoyed. He was also on the MFA Oil Company board for many years.
William dearly loved his family and sharing in their lives and accomplishments. His favorite times were holidays when his family came home to enjoy a wonderful meal prepared by Lois. His favorite term for a good meal was "larpen." If he said a meal was larpen, it was the utmost compliment! An old family recipe for a coffee cake was his absolute favorite. His daughter even changed the name of it to "Daddy's Favorite Cake." The standards for his family were high and they all grew up hearing "you gotta be tough." Hard work, honor, and honesty were instilled in his family and they will keep his legacy alive.
Your labor is done, your home is now heaven;
No more must you wait.
Your legacy lives on, your love of the land,
And your family will close the gate.
In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested to Putnam County FFA or Putnam County Hospital Foundation and may be entrusted to Thomas Funeral Home, 709 27th Street, Unionville, MO 63565
Services for William will be held at Thomas Funeral Home in Unionville, Monday June 2, 2025 with Visitation from 9:00 - 11:00 and Funeral at 11:00. Internment will follow at the Unionville Cemetery.
To view the livestream of William's services, please click on the link below or visit: https://my.gather.app/remember/william-fleshman