Wanda Joy Hindman Hufft, beloved wife, mother, sister and friend, passed away peacefully at home on Nov. 3, 2020, four days shy of her 89th birthday. She will be dearly missed. For the past two years, she has lived with her daughter Cathryn “Cathy” Ashley and son-in-law, Matthew “Matt” Ashley, in Hillsboro, as she battled Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia. In her final days, Wanda was visited by her grandchildren and great grandchildren and surrounded by love and she left this world with close feline friend known to her as Kitty providing comfort by her side. Wanda was born on Nov. 7, 1931, the third of six children to Roy Edward Hindman and Gladys Mae Stallings in Wills Point, Texas. When Wanda was 15, her family moved cross country to Bakersfield, Calif., where she graduated from East Bakersfield High School and soon after met the love of her life, Miles Francis “Bub” Hufft, in the local church. They were married on Nov. 25, 1949, and had three children, Michael Dale, Stephen Roy and Cathryn Lee. They spent 10 years in Bakersfield, 10 more in San Jose, Calif. and eventually relocated back to Bub’s home state of Missouri, when the children were nearly grown. Through it all, when it was not customary for women to do so, Wanda worked outside the home to support her family. In California, she was the administrative assistant to the owner of a grocery store chain, and in Missouri, she was the secretary to Robert Plaster at Empire Gas for many years. She was known for her work ethic and for her strong love of her family. In 1974, when Wanda was 41 years old, she and Bub moved to a farm in Hartville to start their dream life together. It was on this farm that Wanda built her forever home with Bub, a two-story white house with a columned porch on a bluff overlooking the Gasconade River and a view of the sprawling Ozarkian countryside. Wanda and Bub placed rocking chairs along a sliding screen door and spent their evenings gazing out at the river flowing by. When Bub passed away suddenly in 1990, Wanda was left to run the farm alone and stepped up to the challenge, continuing to manage the daily toils of farm life and to act as the matriarch of the family, hosting family gatherings and overnight stays. Her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren have lasting memories of visiting the farm. Of climbing up and down the spiral staircase that Wanda and Bub built. Of skipping rocks along the water. Of finding small frogs and going fishing and taking long walks together, wearing tall rubber boots and jeans. Of jumping on hay bales and checking on the chickens and getting fresh eggs for breakfast. Of playing cards and Scrabble. They remember the smell of bacon, the taste of fried chicken and her famous creamy coconut cake. They remember the table of desserts at Thanksgiving, the feel of both her everyday tablecloth and the white embroidered one brought out only for special occasions. They remember how she taught them to sew and to embroider and how she told them the story of their family. They remember her sweet phrases uttered in quiet pride (“Well, I’ll be…”) and the feel of her thumb lovingly caressing their cheek. They remember how she looked at them and how she made each and every one of them feel special. And they remember how she created a welcoming home wherever she lived, but especially on that farm in Hartville. Her grandson David lived with her there for many years, and she stayed there as long as she could with her field dogs who kept her company. Until the end, Wanda’s love of family and cooking, her sense of humor and her appreciation for the tranquility of the land ran thick, as did her affinity for the TV show “Criminal Minds” and her long-standing schoolgirl crush on Tom Brady (sorry, Gisele) despite her family’s deep loyalty to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Wanda is survived by her eldest son, Michael Hufft (Kathleen); daughter Cathy Ashley (Matt); grandchildren, Adrian Copus (Judy), Jason Copus, Joseph Copus (Samantha), David Hufft, Sarah Hufft-Watson (Jeremy) and Kate Hufft Kelly (Matthew); and great grandchildren Emma Watson-Ivey (17), Claire Copus (12), Dylan Copus (10), Brady Watson (8), Michael Copus (7), Eli Copus (6), Michael Kelly (4) and Theodore Kelly (2). She is survived by sisters, Dorothy Hindman Prewett (Uddell Atiston) and Polly Hindman Hufft; brother Richard Hindman (Shar); brother-in-law, James Weaver; and sister-in-law, Darlene Hindman. Wanda was predeceased by her husband Miles Francis (1990), her son Stephen (2011), brother James Roy Hindman (2015) and sister Mary Weaver (2013). In Wanda’s honor, the family suggests contributions to the Alzheimer’s Foundation (alzfdn.org). Due to COVID-19 guidelines, the family has chosen to postpone a celebration of life until the spring, when Wanda will be buried alongside her husband Bub and son Steve at Hazelwood Cemetery in Springfield.
