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Thomas Carey "Tom" DeCoursey
(1954 - 1986)
Tom was the son of Joseph A. and Virginia A. (Carey) DeCoursey, the fourth of their seven children. He was born in Oklahoma City, OK. The DeCoursey Creamery Co. had a plant there, his father Joseph was presumably involved in running it. In the late 1950's the family moved to Wichita, KS, again probably because of his father's work at the Creamery Co. At the time of his death he was married and had two young sons. Related Items:
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The Wichita Eagle (Wichita, Kansas)
TOM DECOURSEY ADDED A SPECIAL TOUCH TO HIS LIFE, WORK
In 1967, The Wichita Eagle published a story about an enterprising 13- year-old named Tom DeCoursey. With help from some friends, he had come up with a new form of transportation: a parachute attached to a little red wagon. When a strong breeze came, the vehicle rolled and bounced forward, sometimes even leaving the ground. Tom DeCoursey's imagination, say those who knew him, was always humming. And he put his ideas to work: in his advertising career, in his writing, in his life. "It was always, 'What is Tom up to now?' " remembered his mother, Virginia DeCoursey. Thomas Carey DeCoursey, 32, died Saturday in an automobile accident that also killed his 21-month-old son, Connor Wilson DeCoursey. Mr. DeCoursey was born in Oklahoma City, Okla., on April 17, 1954. After the family moved to Wichita, he enrolled at St. Thomas Aquinas School. He attended Kapaun High for a year and a half until his family moved to the Kansas City area. As a seventh-grader at St. Thomas, Mr. DeCoursey got into the movie- making business. He and some friends produced a film they called "Blowing Up the Down Staircase," and charged admission. A second movie called "Hell's Angels" featured 6-year-olds in wigs riding bicycles. For his 30th birthday, some Wichita friends sent him a copy of "Hell's Angels." After graduating from the University of Kansas' journalism school in 1976, Mr. DeCoursey opened his own advertising agency in Kansas City, Kan., called DeCoursey & Associates. Two years ago, he went to work for Intertec Publishing Co. in Kansas City, Mo., a company that publishes brochures and trade journals. A history buff, Mr. DeCoursey collected first edition Mark Twain volumes. He'd recently taken his children to Hannibal, Mo., to see Twain's home. Surviving in addition to his mother is his father, Joseph A. DeCoursey Sr. of Overland Park; his wife, Susan P.; a son, Thomas Carey Jr. of the home; three brothers, Joseph A. Jr. of Blue Springs, Mo., Charles Francis and Mark Patrick, both of Overland Park; three sisters, Jean P. Lowe and Margaret, both of Kansas City, Mo., Barbara Roy of Chicago; grandmother, Mrs. Thomas Carey of Hobart, Okla. Memorials have been established with the American Cancer Society and Mothers Against Drunk Driving. Arrangements are by McGiley Funeral Home, Midtown Chapel, Kansas City, Mo. The Wichita Eagle (Wichita, Kansas)
MAN, 38, CHARGED IN DEATH OF EX-WICHITAN DECOURSEY
KANSAS CITY - A Platte County man has been charged in the traffic deaths of a Kansas City man and his 1-year-old son. Darrell Conner, 38, of Edgerton, was arraigned Monday on charges of involuntary manslaughter and driving under the influence in a weekend accident that killed Thomas C. DeCoursey, 32, and his son Connor. Another son, Thomas Jr., 6, was injured in the accident. The DeCourseys were returning from a Civil War re-enactment at Fort Scott, Kan., on Saturday when their car collided with a van driven by Conner. Conner remained in the Linn County jail Tuesday. | |
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The Salina Journal (Salina, Kansas)
Hitch Parachute to Wagon, Take Unexpected Flight
WICHITA, Kan. (AP)--Three 13 year-old boys broke the "shank of summer doldrums" by hitching a wagon to a parachute for free thrill rides on the Kansas wind.
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