Melvin D. Simmons, age 85, of rural Armstrong, died Saturday, January 23, 2021, at his home.

Graveside services will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday, January 28, at Slater City Cemetery, with Rev. Paul List officiating. Visitation will be held from 10 to 11 a.m. Thursday at Weiker Funeral Home in Slater.

Memorials are suggested to the Missouri Department of Conservation.

Born November 15, 1935 in rural Armstrong, he was the son of the late Marvin and Fannie Mae Jones Simmons.  On November 12, 1966 in Slater, he married Elaine Jett, and she preceded him in death on November 24, 2015.

He is survived by a son, Greg Simmons and his wife Shanna Barkume of Columbia; and several nieces, nephews, and cousins.  He was preceded in death by three brothers and two sisters.

Mr. Simmons was a member of the Armstrong Baptist Church.  He was a U.S. Army veteran of the Korean Conflict.  He was a member for fifty-five years of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Union.  He was a member of the Fayette-Howard County Masonic Lodge.  He worked for thirty-eight years as a lineman for Kansas City Power & Light; and ten years for PAR Electrical Contractors until his retirement.  He lived in the Kansas City area for a number of years before returning to rural Armstrong in 1980.