Richard Lee Bledsoe, the son of John Addison Bledsoe and Pearl Gean
(Nichols) Bledsoe was born May 15, 1936, in rural Hartville, Missouri
and passed away on January 3, 2022, at the Maples Nursing Home in
Springfield, Missouri at the age of 85.
He grew up working on the family farm and graduated Hartville High
School in 1953. He later settled in Springfield, Missouri and married
Sherry Cates in 1961. He worked as a chef in some of Springfield’s
better restaurants.
In 1999 he returned to the Hartville area and lived in a small cabin
in the woods. He said one of his favorite memories was cutting
firewood with his son. He was an avid baseball fan and followed the
St. Louis Cardinals.
He was preceded in death by his parents, and siblings Carrie Belle
Ryan, Anna Mae Blanton, John Junior Bledsoe, Harold Gene Bledsoe, and
Mary June Bledsoe (infant sister). He is survived by former wife
Sherry (Cates) Jeffers and son Richard “Rick” Bledsoe. Jr.
Graveside services will be held at 11:00 am, Saturday,
January 8, 2022, at Little Creek Cemetery, Hartville, MO.