September 2024

Joyce Marie (Haggard) Hon, 79, of Liberty, Miss ouri passed away peacefully surrounded by family and close friends in Kansas City Hospice House at North Kansas City Hospital on September 1st after having been hospitalized for two months following an acute illness. Joyce was born in Kansas City, Missouri on September 23, 1944, to John Haggard, Jr. and Jewel Rose (Claunch) Haggard. She was a life-long Kansas City northlander, graduating from Park Hill High School in 1962. She married her high school sweetheart Jerry Lee Hon on August 11, 1962. They recently celebrated their 62nd wedding anniversary together. Alongside Jerry, Joyce carried on the legacy of her parents, working and co-owning the family business Haggard Hauling and Rigging, Inc., before retiring after 29 years of devoted service. She concluded her career at William Jewell College, working in the business office, Provost’s office, bookstore, and finally the alumni office, retiring in 2008. Joyce was a skilled craft enthusiast, especially talented in needlepoint, quilting, crocheting, and cardmaking.

Richard S. Pryor was born in Clay County, Missouri on December 20th, 1935, to Ted R. & Ruby S. Pryor. He grew up on the family farm with his two older brothers, Ted William “Bill” & Charles F. “Bud.” Richard attended Liberty public schools and graduated as president of his class in 1953. The death of his mother during his college years profoundly changed his life’s course. After two years at William Jewell College, Richard was offered a job at a local bank, which led to his lifelong career in banking. In 1957, following the family tradition of military service, he volunteered for the Army and spent most of his service in France on an Ordnance Depot. During this time, friends started calling him Dick, a name that stuck for life. Dick returned to First National Bank in Liberty in 1959. That fall, he met Linda, a new English and speech teacher at Liberty High School. They married on July 10th, 1960. Dick pursued further education, earning an AA Degree from Longview College, a business Degree from Columbia College, and graduating from the Graduate School of Banking at the University of Wisconsin. He became a bank officer before 21 and joined the National Bank in North Kansas City in 1961. In 1969, at 33, he was offered the Presidency of the Thornton National Bank in Nevada, Missouri, where the family lived for four years. In 1973, Dick became CEO and part-owner of the Bank of Jacomo in Blue Springs, Missouri. Under his 20-year leadership, the bank and its holding company grew to two charters with six locations in five towns. Dick was actively involved in his communities. He served on city councils, chambers of commerce, school boards, and hospital boards in various cities. He was instrumental in founding St. Mary’s Hospital in Blue Springs and establishing a junior college branch campus there. He was named Citizen of the Year in 1980 and Business Person of the Year in 1992 in Blue Springs. Dick and Linda were staunch supporters of higher education. Dick serv