Obituary of Fern Stout

Fern Loomis was born to Fred and Mary Loomis in Pampa, Texas on November 28th, 1929, while her father was working in the oil fields of West Texas. Shortly after Fern’s birth, Fred moved his family to Sharon, Oklahoma, where the family expanded to include one younger sister and three younger brothers. In 1942, Fred Loomis bought a farm ten miles south of Freedom, Oklahoma, where Fern grew up. Fern began school at the age of five. She finished grade school in a one-room schoolhouse, located one mile north and one mile east of the farm. After completing 8th grade, Fern had the option of moving in with her grandmother in Woodward to begin high school. She did not want to leave her family, and chose to take 8th grade a second time so that she could live at home. The following year, she began attending Freedom High School. As soon as she turned 16, she was put in charge of driving her father’s truck, picking up about 10 neighbor children on her way to school. This pickup had grain-board sides in the bed and a tarp over the top for bad weather! Fern met Louis D. Stout after moving to the Freedom area. They enjoyed going for drives and sat together at many ballgames. During her last two years of high school, Fern regularly walked one-half mile to the mailbox, hoping for letters from Louis while he was in the Army. Fern graduated high school in the spring of 1948, and married Louis on September 25th, 1948. The wedding was a double ceremony, performed in the Stout family living room, along-side Louis’ sister Phyllis and Dick Crissup. Louis and Fern lived at the Stout homestead for 10 years, farming the land and starting their family. Three children were born to Louis and Fern during this time: Cheryl, Darryl, and Gail. In 1959, after two bumper crops of wheat in Oklahoma, Louis and Fern were able to strike out on their own. They purchased 880 acres of farm land from Lester Jacobson, located four miles north of Burlington, Colorado. They moved to town (Burlington) in 1976 but continued to farm until 1990, when they sold the farm equipment and began leasing out their land. After retiring, Fern continued to be active in her community, working as a clerk at Orth’s Department Store, driving school buses, volunteering at the Colorado Welcome Center, and traveling extensively with family, friends and the Good Sam’s Club. Fern was dedicated to her church family at First Baptist Church, teaching and serving in many capacities throughout the years. Fern was preceded in death by her parents, Fred and Mary Loomis, sister Marilyn Scates, two brothers Duane and Dwight Loomis, and son Darryl Stout. She is survived by Louis Stout, her husband of 66 years, brother Delbert (Joan) Loomis, daughter Cheryl (Harold) Naughton, daughter-in-law Susan Stout, son Gail (Frances) Stout, eight grandchildren and fifteen great-grandchildren.