Lonny Nichols died Thursday, November 5, 2020 at St Francis Hospital in Tulsa, OK due to COVID-19. He was born on November 12, 1941 in the family home in Clay County, KS. He was the second of three sons born to Lloyd and Edna (Bach) Nichols. He earned the nick name Toad as an infant and it stayed with him until death.
Toad attended rural schools in the Longford community and graduated from Longford High School in 1960. He married Carol Kinder (Kroshus) on February 19, 1971 at the Longford United Methodist Church and they made their home and raised their four children on a farm near Vine Creek, West of Longford. He was a mild mannered, soft spoken, kindhearted man with a twist of witty country humor. He was first a great dad dedicated to spending time with his children and family. He was also a farmer and rancher until 2014 when he and Carol retired and moved to Oologah, Oklahoma to be closer to family.
Toad grew up working on the Nichols farm with his parents and brothers and custom harvesting from Texas to Crosby, North Dakota where he met Carol, his wife of 48 years. During his childhood, the family added their first indoor bathroom and was one of the first homes in the area to receive rural electric service. He bought a Chevelle as a teenager and had a love of cars since then, going to car shows in California, Texas, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin while visiting his kids was a favorite pastime. He spent many hours washing and shining the wheels of his pickup once he moved to Oklahoma, where for the first time in his life he didn’t live on a gravel road. He served in the Clay Center National Guard and spent much of his life in a combine or on horseback, but his passion was spending time with his wife and kids. He enjoyed visiting about family history and could spend hours looking at his well-traveled, tattered, and torn road atlas, sharing photos of vacations, reminiscing and planning road trips. He enjoyed nature, wide open landscapes, hiking, white water rafting, fly fishing and exploring jeep trails on summer vacations to the mountains with his family. In his early years he was an avid, self-taught hunter and trapper and was able to fund his hobby with income from the sale of furs.
Toad spent most of his life within a short distance from the home he grew up in and was a servant son. He and his brothers spent their lives helping Lloyd and Edna with daily operations of farm life. Toad was readily available and took daily care of Lloyd after Edna passed.
He will be greatly missed every day until the family is together again.
Lonny was preceded in death by his parents and his brother Leo and wife Donna. He is survived by his wife Carol of the home, son Randy Kinder and wife Diana of Exeter, CA, his daughter, Melissa Stuczynski and husband Randy of Iola, WI, daughter Kimberly Hardin and husband Glenn of Oologah, OK and son Joshua Lonny Nichols and partner Aaron Plater of Monrovia, CA. He also leaves behind his younger brother, Loran James Nichols and wife Sharon of Longford. Grandchildren include Dane and Molly Kinder of Exeter, Megan and Ali Rass of Kaukauna, WI, Skee Hardin of Fort Worth, TX and Lily and Zeta Hardin of Oologah. Great grandchildren are Dylin, Bella and Aiden of Kaukauna and Emersyn and Hayzin Hardin of Fort Worth.
Visitation: Wednesday, November 11, 2020 3:00-8:00 PM, Neill-Schwensen-Rook Funeral Home, Clay Center, KS
Graveside Services and Burial: Thursday, November 12, 2020 10:00 AM, Rose Meron Cemetery, Longford, KS
Minister: Debra Tompsett-Welch
Memorials: Donations in Lonny’s memory can be left to the Longford Coachlight Restaurant and St. Francis Hospital Gardens by visiting gofundme.com and searching for Lonny Nichols.
***Masks are required for visitation and highly recommended for the graveside services***