Gene Alt (Col. Eugene E. Alt)
Eugene Eldon Alt answered his Master at the age of 89, January 29th, 2010, at his home.
He was blessed to be the son of Roy and Matilda Alt, farmers from Panola, Illinois. The love of his life was his wife, Lee Alt, his two children, Sarah and John and his, ten grandchildren and seven great grandchildren. He and Lee were married June 22, 1947 in Neosho, Missouri. He was preceded in death by his wife, Lee in November 2009 and was survived by his daughter Sarah Swanson and her husband, Gary of Bentonville, Arkansas and son John Alt of Omaha, Nebraska.
He served in the Army in WWII in the Asiatic Pacific Theatre as Captain, remaining in the Army reserves for 26 years. He served on two Johnson County boards. He served on and chaired the Leawood City council and served as it’s President and becoming Mayor upon the resignation of the presiding Mayor. He was elected for two additional years.
Gene was born March 23, 1920. He graduated from El Paso Township High in 1937. He assisted his parents on the farm for three years before attending the University of Illinois, graduating in 1947 with a BS in electrical engineering. He was a member of the Acacia Social Fraternity and a member of Scabbard and Blades, Military fraternity and PiTau Pi Sigma , an electrical engineering honorary fraternity. He was employed by AT&T for 34 years, retiring as a District Engineer. He was a long time member of Cherokee Christian Church, serving as a Deacon elder and Chairman of the Board. He was a member of the Leawood Lions Club and served twice as president. He was also a member of the Military Officers Association of America.
Gene was a true volunteer at heart. He worked tirelessly raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Salvation Army over the years. In addition , the “Colonel” had total command of his yard and garden. Putting his farming know how and love for the land at work, he volunteered many years as a Master Gardener for the County Extension Office. With all of this said, our father and grandfather “Gene” Alt was real family man. He was a wonderful provider, his kindness and caring were never failing. He was always there to give advice and had a story to go with it. He was a man of few words, but when he spoke we all listened. There will never be a man that could walk in his footsteps. As he walked through life succeeding in all he did, we are fortunate to have call him Dad and Grandpa.
Memorial contributions may be made to Cherokee Christian Church, 7457 Cherokee Drive, Prairie Village, Kansas 66208.
Memorial Services
A memorial service will be at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, February 1, 2010, at Cherokee Christian Church. Friends may call from 10-11:00 a.m. Monday at the church. Inurnment with military honors for Mr. and Mrs. Alt will be 2:30 p.m. Monday in the Fort Leavenworth Cemetery.
Print Obituary & Condolences
Offer Condolence for the family of Gene Alt (Col. Eugene E. Alt)
Messages of Condolence
Please share your thoughts ...
QR Code for this Obituary
Use your Smartphone to scan the QR Code on the right to access this page on your phone.Grief Video Series
Join Grief Expert, Doug Manning in his Journey Through Grief video series.
Watch the Grief Videos here.Would you like to order flowers?
If you would like to order flowers please see the selection available at Russell Florist. Click here to see all of the available floral arrangements.
Gene was one of the finest gentlemen we have ever known. We were master gardeners together. Our sincere condolences to his family for we know your loss is great. But, may the wonderful memories of him warm your heart and help fill the void.
Clay and I were master gardeners with Gene. A finer gentleman we have probably never known. Our sincere condolences to your family for we know your loss is great.
Please accept my condolences to Gene’s family from a fellow employee back in the late forties and fifties before the breakup of A T & T. when a number of us got our engineering degrees and when to work for a fine company with good people like Gene.
Bob Watson
We are sorry to hear of Gene’s passing and received the news through an AT&T retirees information e-mail. Not only did Anita work with Gene, but was also a Cherokee Christian Church Member. Both Lee and Gene were one of the reasons that church was an ongoing bright spot in our Christian lives when my daughter and I attended there. He will be missed by all at Cherokee and remembered fondly by those fromt AT&T.
Dear John,
I was so sorry to hear of your mother’s death, then you father’s. What an enormous loss this is for you and your family, and I am so, so sorry. The little bit I saw of them and Scott saw of them in the office helped us to know what wonderful people they were and great parents to you and your children.
We all miss seeing you. You were such a part of our lives during important times in our lives. I think of Adam as we go to the D.R. every year. I wish you and your family peace and strength and joy in your memories.
Peace and love,
ginny and scott beall
Dear Alt Family,
As a staff member at the Johnson County Extension Office I had the pleasure to work with Gene as one of our Extension Master Gardeners, as a volunteer on my agriculture committee, and in his role as the chairman of our board. I truly loved working with Gene, hearing his ideas for educational programming, and having him relate his farming exeriences. It was my pleaseure to know Gene and I want you to know how sorry I am for your loss. Thanks for sharing him with us.
Rick Miller
I had the great pleasure of meeting Mr. Alt when I was secretary at Cherokee Christian Church. I have never in my life met a kinder human being who talked the talk and walked the walk. What a blessing knowing him was. His was a tireless volunteer, whether it be attending weekly prayer group, helping with Pancake Day, The Salvation Army bellringing each holiday season, or in any other capacity. His gentle way, his well chosen and thoughtful words, were truly an inspiration not to just me but to many. His devotion and very apparent love of his beautiful wife Lee was unmatched. His faithfulness to our Lord though no doubt tested many times throughout his life was unwaivering. Truly a gem. I will miss him.
Gene was Mayor of Leawood when I bought my folks 31 foot Airstream travel trailer/retirement home for our young family to enjoy. I parked it in our circle drive only to learn that that was not allowed in Leawood. As Mayor, Gene had to deal with myself – and others – who challenged the city ordinance on this issue. Gene was always repectful of our desires and dealt with us fairly. So fairly I never knew what his true feelings on the issue were. I was always grateful for his understanding and have tried to model my own actions after his example. Leawood is a better place to live because of his leadership and volunteer efforts.
The remembrances expressed at his funeral reflected how much our city will miss him – just as you, his family, will.
Sincerely, Dave Dixon, MD
I can’t stop thinking of Lee & Gene Alt and the impact they had on my life and our community. Gene took me into the Leawood Lions with open arms and heart–who will send Gayle & I our yearly birthday and anniversary cards? Gene was a shining example of what is right in this world–tireless compassion for others, a constant drive to do good deeds and a strong leader. When Gene put his mind to something, the results were always positive. There will be a large hole in my life without these two but a huge blessing that I had an opportunity to know them and call them friends. My deepest condolences to the family that we have come to know through Gene & Lee, may God provide strength and long memories of your experiences and love of Gene & Lee, they will be dearly missed.