Daniel Lee Cole

In the early hours of Sunday March 30th, Daniel Lee Cole transitioned peacefully, hand in hand with his beloved wife of twenty-five years Jeanette Sue Dunlap-Cole. His Spirit was strong to the end, and his complete devotion to his family and friends was unwavering through his four-plus year fight against cancer. He used every available moment to its fullest, sharing his love and lifetime of learning with others. He was loved by many and had such a profound impact on both his family and his communities.

He is preceded in Death by his parents Dorothy and Wilbur Cole, as well as his brothers Kenneth and Ronald Cole.

He leaves a legacy with his grandchildren, who will miss him dearly and treasure their shared moments together including Aubrey, Lila, Sam, Ian, Colin, Jaylee, Gracie, Faith, Luke, Leah, Libby, Jonah and Emily. Dan loved to help his grandkids build projects indoors and outdoors, everything from headboards to gardens and planter boxes. He also gave generously of his time to assist his grandson’s Robotics teams, working with them to develop ideas and prototypes.

Dan was a doting and proud father to daughter Robin and son Jason, and played an extremely significant role in the upbringing of William O’Connor, including introducing him to tennis.

His involvement in Scouting was a strong ongoing theme, including a trip to the Philmont Scout Ranch in Cimarron, New Mexico with Jason for an unforgettable high adventure trek. His support and motivation was the key factor in Jason earning his Eagle Scout and he was intensely proud of the accomplishment. He was a member of multiple honor camping organizations, and relished every summer camp at the H. Roe Bartle Scout Reservation. As an avid outdoorsman, he was always interested in motivating and inspiring others to appreciate and explore the outdoors. He loved to spend as much time as possible hiking, camping, fly-fishing or just savoring fresh air and sunshine among his garden boxes on the patio. He absolutely loved the fishing trips to Bennett Springs Arkansas with Sue, even if they didn’t always catch the limit. The joy was in the journey.

Daniel Cole spent his career as a primary school teacher in the Grandview and Kansas City School districts, and as an educator at Powell Gardens after retirement. He was noted in the local newspaper for being one of the first male Kindergarten teachers in 1971 at Fleetridge elementary, and went on to teach several different grades and subjects, also working as a Special Education teacher. He tremendously enjoyed being able to combine his love for nature and his talents as an educator teaching Environmental Science in the Kansas City magnet schools. Often bringing students camping and fishing for the first time, he treasured these opportunities to introduce young people to something he so deeply loved.

Dan always found something to enjoy with everyone whose life he touched. He was a ham radio amateur known by the callsign KC0VYT. He studied and practiced until he earned the highest FCC license possible as an Extra Class Operator. He was a member of the Raytown Amateur Radio Club K0GQ where his friends will remember him as a SK (silent key) from now on.

He loved to talk with everyone, whether he was taking Lucy for walks, at the grocery store, hardware store, or anywhere else. He really enjoyed his morning breakfast meetings with his friends at Hy-Vee and enthusiastically shared the latest updates with family. His trips to IHOP were another source of enjoyment, and he loved to share his joyful personality with the staff.

He was someone you could always count on to be there for you whether you asked or not.

He was a nice, good human, the kind we need more of.