Constance Joan (Connie) (Harper) Crapson, 77, of Tarkio, Missouri, passed away Wednesday, August 11, 2010, at the Tarkio Rehabilitation and Health Care center in Tarkio, after a two year courageous battle with cancer.

Connie was born April 16, 1933, in Ellsworth, Kansas, to Harry Eugene Harper and Jessie Maria (Bengston) Harper.

Preceding Connie in death were her parents and one sister, Elaine Harper Vaughan. Surviving are her Husband of 60 years, Leland Crapson, of the home; one daughter, Kathryn Francis, Vail, Iowa; three sons, the Reverend James W. Crapson, College Springs, Iowa, the Reverend Dr. Jeffrey Crafton, Eden Prairie, Minnesota, and Paul T. Crafton, Seattle, Washington; one sister, Virginia Simmonds, Los Alamos, New Mexico; one brother, John Harper, Wichita, Kansas; nine grandchildren; and one great-granddaughter.

Connie was a strong leader, teacher, and believer in education as the liberating force in the lives of her students. She was an Honor Graduate at Tarkio College, Tarkio, Missouri, and had further study at Northwest Missouri State University, Maryville, Missouri; Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota; and The Institute for The Teaching of the French Language, Paris, France.

In a 31 year teaching career, Connie taught classes in art, and in the French and Spanish Language and Culture to students at Tarkio College, and students in the Tarkio, Craig, and Fairfax, Missouri schools. She was also known for the excellent creative Art Shows of her students.

As a Master Gardener, Connie was seen many spring and summer mornings working, feeding, watering, and talking to her beloved plants, flowers, and vegetables growing in her gardens.

Connie was selected as Tarkio Citizen of the Year in 1997, and a Special Citizen of the Year in Tarkio in 2007, for her volunteer work in the Tarkio Community.

Connie was active in the Tarkio United Methodist Church, serving as a Church School Teacher, singing in the Church Choir, and using her talents as a Master Painter to paint murals of characters and events of the Bible on the walls of the Main Hall of the Church. This was a two-year project, and is an amazing display of teaching and learning about the history of the Christian Faith.

Connie’s legacy is her family, her friends, and the hundreds of students she loved and helped with their education.

MEMORIAL SERVICE: 10:30 A.M., Saturday, August 14, Tarkio United Methodist Church.
VISITATION: 7:00 –  8:00 P.M., Friday, August 13, at the Fellowship Hall of Tarkio United Methodist Church.
INURNMENT: Will be held at a later date at East Hills Cemetery, Erie, Kansas.
MEMORIALS: Kendallwood Hospice, St. Joseph, Missouri.
Obituaries and online condolences: www.minterfuneralchapels.com.
Services: Davis Funeral Home, Tarkio.