Bud was born March 13, 1943 in rural Harrisonville, MO, a son of Elbert Carr and Amanda Marie (Jones) Flanary. He attended 36 Rural School #58 and was a 1962 Harrisonville High School graduate. Bud was a lifelong Harrisonville resident. A good portion of his childhood was spent outdoors and helping his parents and many brothers and sisters work on the Flanary farm. During high school, Bud worked at Scavuzzo’s grocery store and helped his brother-in-law bale hay, moving into town after the sale of the Flanary family farm in 1957.
Bud enlisted in the US Army Reserves in 1964, attending infantry training at Fort Jackson, SC. He later transferred to the Missouri National Guard, Military Police unit in Lone Jack, MO, where he served until 1970. In his free time, Bud was with his brother, nephews, and friends working on and racing his muscle cars. Bud met and married M. Kathleen “Kathy’’ (Crafton) Flanary in Archie, MO on August 1966. They settled in town in Harrisonville and had two children, Trenton “Trent” Lane and Tonya Leigh. Bud worked at the Leed's GMC plant in Kansas City in the 1960s, before going to school in the new field of Data Systems Processing. He started his long career as a data programmer/manager on the KC Country Club Plaza at United Farm Agency. He then spent the next decades at several data processing firms in Kansas City, MO and Overland Park, KS. Bud finished his career working in Sidney, Nebraska as a Programmer/Analyst for Cabela’s, retiring in July, 2008.
Family and friends were everything to Bud. His wife, kids, grandkids, large extended family and close-knit group of friends will always remember his sense of humor, story-telling, and down-to-earth, methodical sensibilities and integrity. Bud loved watching his kids/grandkids grow up and attending their sports, games and activities. He loved family get-togethers, dinners and being outdoors; he enjoyed nature, animals, old muscle cars, fishing, gardening, music, card games, sweet iced tea, and trivia. Bud and Kathy spent their retired years on adventures- long, meandering car trips. They enjoyed going down the road, stopping here and there to take in the sites, going antiquing, and visiting friends and family. In his later years, he loved going on fishing trips with his friends.
Bud was preceded in death by his parents, three brothers, Earl Wayne “Pete” Flanary, Melvin “Jack” Flanary, and Elmer Flanary, and three sisters, Dollie Pulliam, Hazel Middaugh, and Elberta “Bert” Gardner. Bud was a truly loved and respected husband, brother, dad, Papa, uncle, great-uncle, cousin, and friend. He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Kathy Flanary, Harrisonville, MO; his son, Trent Flanary of Charlotte, NC; his daughter, Tonya Kral (Jim) of Chesapeake, VA; three grandchildren, Landon Gragg (Caitlin) of Pensacola, FL, Zoey and Hadley Flanary of Overland Park, KS; two sisters, Lois Knibb (Dean), Shirley Henry (Larry), both of Harrisonville, and many nieces, nephews, great-nieces, great-nephews, cousins and extended family members and friends.
