Leo Elizabeth Hall Bruce Wood

Leo Elizabeth Hall Bruce Wood passed away on February 15, 2022. She was born November 26, 1932, in Mona, Montana. She was the sixth of seven girls born to Asa and Lois (Melton) Hall. Leo's parents homesteaded in Mona, and the family lived in a sod house. She attended early elementary school in Fairview, Montana, before moving to Missouri in 1940. She attended Thornburg Grade School and graduated from Unionville High School in 1950.

On June 4, 1950, she was united in marriage to David Bruce. To this union, three children were born Linda, Don, and Lori. She was widowed in 1984 at the age of fifty-one and later married Robert (Bob) Wood in 1990. Bob passed away in 2005.

Leo is survived by her very special friend, Don Partin; daughter, Lori (Roger) Ray, son-in-law Ronny Roof, and daughter-in-law Ranae Bruce-Shields, all of Unionville. Her grandchildren are Kristen (Craig) Liesen of Quincy, IL Shelby (Troy) Selvy of Unionville, and David Ray of Unionville; great grandchildren, Chloe and Courtney Liesen, and Ryan and Wyatt Selvy. She is also survived by Bob Wood’s children and grandchildren; she treasured regular after school visits from Bob’s grandchildren Robert and Jessica. A brother-in-law, William Fleshman, also survives as well as many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents, both husbands, David Bruce and Bob Wood, children, Linda Roof and Don Bruce, and sisters, Aletha Dolin, Virginia Russell, Lily Mae Lemen, Esther Bernardi, Lois Fleshman, and Helen Hall in infancy.

Leo was baptized at age fifteen. She was a member of the Lemons Church of Christ from 1950-1985 and later a member of the Parkview Church of Christ in Unionville, MO. In her early years, Leo worked as a secretary to the Superintendent of the High School and at the Dairy Lane. From 1958-1985 she co-owned Bruce's tire shop with her husband David where she did the bookkeeping. From 1977-1988 she co-owned MaLinda's Fashions, a dress store with her daughter, Linda.

Leo was PTA president for Linda and Don's school. She taught sewing in 4-H for eleven years. She also taught Sunday school class at the Lemons Church of Christ. She was a past member of PEO. Leo was a gifted quilt maker. She spent hours piecing the perfect quilt together and loved trying new patterns to add to her collection. She loved sharing her quilts with family, friends, and especially with her daughters and granddaughters who often fabricated the actual number of quilts they had in order to get more. At last count, Leo had created over 150 quilts, and often entered them in the Putnam County Fair where she brought home many blue ribbons.

Leo loved baking Christmas candy and had the best cherry mash and snickers bar recipe around. She even had requests for fruit cake. She would fill tins of candy for weeks at a time. She also considered chocolate to be a nourishment to her body and considered it one of her basic food groups.

Memorial services for Leo Wood will be at Playle & Collins Family Funeral Home at 2:00 pm on Saturday, February 19, 2022, with visitation one hour prior to the service.  Inurnment will be at the Unionville Cemetery at a later date.

Memorials may be made payable to the Unionville Cemetery or the Putnam County Care Center and entrusted with Playle and Collins Family Funeral Home, 709 S. 27 ^th St., Unionville, MO  63565.