Terri was born to Martin Russell McCormick and Lois Alene (Westerhold) McCormick in Wichita Falls, TX on May 22, 1952. Her father was serving in the Air Force during the Korean War, and Terri was born on the base hospital. Her arrival was premature and a bit of an emergency, so in the rush to get her mother prepared for the birth, her dad was left in the room. He quietly and unobtrusively leaned against the back wall and, unlike most of the men of his generation, was able to be at his daughter’s birth. Terri’s mother said she had put away $20 for the delivery and hospital stay, but because Terri came early, it cost $40. Her mom later said, “I shouldn’t have been surprised; kids always cost more than you think they will.”
Terri lived her early years with her parents in a tiny trailer near Richards-Gebaur Air Base in Grandview, Missouri and then in a little house on Walnut Street in Rich Hill, Missouri where the family settled after her father left the Air Force. In Rich Hill the family expanded to include a little brother, Don, which Terri was devoted to. She lived in Rich Hill for most of her school years. She loved the community, had many close friendships, and was sad to leave it at 16 when her father left work at Bendix to farm full-time. Her last two years of high school were at Butler High School in Butler, Missouri, where she graduated in 1970.
Terri married Lonnie Stephen Loyd in 1969, and they had three children. Sonita Loyd, Gregory Wayne Loyd, and Melissa Lavonia Loyd. Melissa lived only 12 hours, passing on Terri’s 21st birthday, a pain Terri carried her whole life. Sadly, the marriage did not last, but Lonnie and Terri shared an affection for each other that lasted throughout their lives.
On February 7, 1976, Terri married Bennie Lee Ellis and became the stepmother to Ben’s children Ben Jr. and Troy Dale. They lived throughout western and southern Kansas (Larned, St. Francis, Garden City, Girard, Fort Scott, Pittsburg, and Wichita) moving around first for Ben’s work and then for hers. They spent 29 years together until Ben’s passing in 2005. It was not always an easy marriage, but it was an extremely devoted one. She mourned him for the rest of her life and said she looked forward to seeing him again after so many years apart.
While Terri and Ben were married, she decided to continue her education. She was a bright student, both in elementary and secondary school, and she really shined in college, which she started when her children were also in college. She graduated from PSU with a BS in nursing, and she was very proud of her accomplishments as a non-traditional student, finishing her degree at age 39.
Terri had many jobs in her lifetime. She was a bit of restless spirit and liked to try new things. These are not all of her jobs, but they are a good sampling: server at a drive-in burger stand, nursing aid, factory worker, tax preparer, typist, waitress, Amway sales representative, nursing home activities director, cook, truck driver, and nurse. It was in nursing that Terri found her true calling. She loved everything about it, even the parts many would find unpleasant. Her work took her all over southern and central Kansas, and she often worked extra shifts in Kansas City hospitals, which she really enjoyed. Most of the time she worked at night, and she kept her night shift sleep schedule for the rest of her life.
After she became disabled and couldn’t nurse any longer, she began Uber driving, which she loved. She met so many interesting people, and she was proud of her ability to get them where they needed to go if they didn’t know the Wichita area. She had cold bottles of water ready for them when they got in the car, told them about attractions, and made sure they always felt welcome. Her mostly repeat customers told her how much they valued her.
Terri was a hard worker her whole life, though if something didn’t interest her, she could ignore it indefinitely. Her approach was part charming, part annoying, but those who loved her tolerated it. Her checkbook—not balanced. Doing laundry, what laundry? Housekeeping, let’s do it later. Thankfully, her husband was more interested in domestic chores. But her interests and talents were numerous, and she could do almost anything she decided to, often without much effort. She liked technology and was an early and frequent adopter of the newest gadgets. She was an expert at crocheting, loved to paint ceramics, decorated cakes beautifully, made jewelry and greeting cards, and was a very good cook. She also excelled at typing, could play the piano and sing, had lovely penmanship, possessed a great eye for arranging flowers, and really enjoyed writing. No one really knows if she was a good writer because she didn’t share it, but she wrote prolifically, though she never seemed to finish one notebook before starting another. Notebooks, especially pretty ones, were her thing.
And Terri loved to travel, which she did for many years on the truck with Ben, but their favorite place to visit was Branson. They often went there with family, seeing shows and eating at buffets, but she especially loved Silver Dollar City. She wanted to visit Branson again before she passed, but sadly it was not to be.
She was also an avid collector: porcelain dolls, jewelry, kitchenware (that she had no desire to use) office and craft supplies, carousel horses, native American and cowboy dรฉcor, and very colorful, sparkly clothing. It was suggested that she would love for people to show up at her funeral with hot glue guns and rhinestones to bedazzle the casket. And when she left us, she was in the possession of literally hundreds of fancy ink pens. She never met a pen she didn’t like or want to use, especially the pretty ones.
She also loved music. Elvis, Conway and Loretta, Reba, Brooks and Dunn, George and Tammy, Clint, Marty. She called them by their first names, and she talked about them like they were family. So annoying, also kind of sweet.
At the end of her life, she returned to Butler to live in a little brown house a mile from her mother’s. It was a house her grandparents had lived in, and she was grateful to be back near family. Unfortunately, her mobility decreased as her health needs increased, and she spent most of her last year at Butler Center in Bulter, Missouri. She had wonderful doctors in Butler and Kansas City, and she had the care she needed at Butler Center. She was pretty much confined to her room, but she was able to build friendships with staff and residents while there. She always had a tub of candy at the ready for a nurse, aid, or visitor, which made her a popular destination! At the end of her life, the nursing home staff were especially kind to her, and many quietly told her family that she was their favorite. She would have loved that! She also spent considerable time at Bates County Hospital, and the ambulance staff, ER staff, and nursing staff treated her so well on her many journeys there.
Those who left before Terri were her Grandma Hold (Eula Westerhold); Grandma Vernie (Verna McCormick) and Grandpa Pete (Forest McCormick); her Auntie Evelyn (Evelyn McCormick Dale and husband Lennie Dale); her Aunt Lorses (Delores McCormick Cronin); her first husband Lonnie Loyd; her second husband Bennie Ellis; her baby daughter Melissa Loyd; her baby sister Sheila McCormick; her baby brother Tommy McCormick; and her beloved Daddy, Martin McCormick. She leaves behind her mother Lois McCormick; her brother Donald McCormick and his wife Christine; her daughter Sonita Loyd; her son Greg Loyd and wife Brooke of New Hampshire and their children Ian and wife Priscilla, Jessica, Owen, and Ainsley; her stepsons Ben Jr Ellis wife Jackie and children Michael and Jared; and Troy Dale Ellis and daughters Courtney and Amber; as well as many step-grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. She was especially attached to her nephew Brad McCormick (Denver) and to Ben’s nieces and nephews, Jan, Brenda, Joyce, DeAnn, Jeannie, Lisa, and Kevin. If we have omitted anyone, it is unintentional.
The family would like to thank those people in her life who made things so much better for her in the last dozen years, as her health declined: Robert Snearly, Tina Turner, and Ruth Wix. She would have had a much less happy and much shorter life without their friendship and assistance.
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