| Luella Rene Moffitt Hays |
Published in Topeka Capital-Journal on June 26, 2015
Luella Rene Hays
Luella Rene Hays, 97, Topeka, Ks, passed away
peacefully on her birthday, June 24, 2015.
Luella was born June 24, 1918, in Mill Grove, Missouri,
the daughter of Everett and Clarinda Moffitt.
Luella enjoyed music, played the violin and won 1st
place in the county talent contest. She went to
Washington, D.C., with her father, who worked for the
U.S. Government at that time and graduated from
Eastern High School (1936). Upon their return to Mill
Grove, Luella attended and graduated from Chillicothe Business College and began
her first job at the Social Security office in Princeton, Missouri.
While attending a social function in Princeton, she met the new football coach and love
of her life, Barney Hays. They were married on February 18, 1939 in Kansas City,
Missouri. In addition to raising their four children, Bob, Marcia, Dick and John, Luella
worked as a personal secretary and office assistant in Missouri, Kansas and Arizona.
Luella and Barney made their home in Topeka for many years and Luella worked
several jobs as a personal secretary in the insurance and medical field. They moved to
Wichita in 1966 and remained there for four years. They left Kansas for Phoenix and
Prescott, Arizona in 1970, and lived there until Luella moved back to Kansas in 1985,
following Barney s death in 1981.
Luella was a member of First Christian Church in Topeka.
Luella was preceded in death by her husband Barney, Brother Eugene, and a
great-grandson, Dominic, who lost his life in an automobile accident in 2014.
She is survived by her four children, sons Bob Hays and wife Jackie of Phoenix Az.,
Richard Hays and Meredith Currie of Topeka, Ks., John Hays and wife Janet of Valley
Center, Ks., and daughter Marcia Kuhlman and husband Rod of Heber Springs, Ar.
She was the proud grandmother of 13 grandchildren and 24 great-grandchildren.
Funeral services will be at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, June 29, 2015, at Penwell-Gabel
Mid-Town Chapel. Following the services, Luella will be laid to rest next to Barney at
Mount Hope Cemetery, 4700 S.W. 17th.
The family will receive friends at the funeral home from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. on Sunday,
June 28, 2015.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to First Christian Church, 1880
S.W. Gage Blvd., Topeka, Ks. 66604.
To leave a special message for the family, visit www.PenwellGabelTopeka.com
Luella Rene Hays
Funeral Home
Penwell-Gabel Funeral Home & Crematory
1321 SW 10th Ave
Topeka, KS 66604
(785) 354-8558
Luella Rene Hays
Luella Rene Hays, 97, Topeka, Ks, passed away
peacefully on her birthday, June 24, 2015.
Luella was born June 24, 1918, in Mill Grove, Missouri,
the daughter of Everett and Clarinda Moffitt.
Luella enjoyed music, played the violin and won 1st
place in the county talent contest. She went to
Washington, D.C., with her father, who worked for the
U.S. Government at that time and graduated from
Eastern High School (1936). Upon their return to Mill
Grove, Luella attended and graduated from Chillicothe Business College and began
her first job at the Social Security office in Princeton, Missouri.
While attending a social function in Princeton, she met the new football coach and love
of her life, Barney Hays. They were married on February 18, 1939 in Kansas City,
Missouri. In addition to raising their four children, Bob, Marcia, Dick and John, Luella
worked as a personal secretary and office assistant in Missouri, Kansas and Arizona.
Luella and Barney made their home in Topeka for many years and Luella worked
several jobs as a personal secretary in the insurance and medical field. They moved to
Wichita in 1966 and remained there for four years. They left Kansas for Phoenix and
Prescott, Arizona in 1970, and lived there until Luella moved back to Kansas in 1985,
following Barney s death in 1981.
Luella was a member of First Christian Church in Topeka.
Luella was preceded in death by her husband Barney, Brother Eugene, and a
great-grandson, Dominic, who lost his life in an automobile accident in 2014.
She is survived by her four children, sons Bob Hays and wife Jackie of Phoenix Az.,
Richard Hays and Meredith Currie of Topeka, Ks., John Hays and wife Janet of Valley
Center, Ks., and daughter Marcia Kuhlman and husband Rod of Heber Springs, Ar.
She was the proud grandmother of 13 grandchildren and 24 great-grandchildren.
Funeral services will be at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, June 29, 2015, at Penwell-Gabel
Mid-Town Chapel. Following the services, Luella will be laid to rest next to Barney at
Mount Hope Cemetery, 4700 S.W. 17th.
The family will receive friends at the funeral home from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. on Sunday,
June 28, 2015.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to First Christian Church, 1880
S.W. Gage Blvd., Topeka, Ks. 66604.
To leave a special message for the family, visit www.PenwellGabelTopeka.com
Luella Rene Hays
Funeral Home
Penwell-Gabel Funeral Home & Crematory
1321 SW 10th Ave
Topeka, KS 66604
(785) 354-8558
