John Eugene Summers, 81, of Gladstone, Missouri, formerly of Junction City, Kansas, died August 1, 2026. He was born February 22, 1945, in Poplar Bluff, Missouri, to Louis Jeriel Summers, Sr., and Geraldine Sue (Thomson) Summers, and grew up in Malden, Missouri, where he graduated from Malden High School in 1963. He attended Memphis State University and served three years in the United States Army.
In 1966 he married Myrna "Gayle" Tolbert of Gideon, Missouri. They had 42 years together before her death in 2008.
The military brought John and Gayle to Fort Riley, where they fell in love with the area and decided to make it home. He built his career in Junction City, first in banking where he served as Chairman of the Kansas Savings and Loan Board of Governance, and then in Real Estate, as owner of John E. Summers & Co. and Broker at Century 21 Gold Team Realtors, later retiring in 2016. He was President of the Junction City Jaycees and of the Junction City Chamber of Commerce and played a major role in building one of the largest Fourth of July celebrations to this day, Sundown Salute (Freedom Fest). He stayed active in the community and in the Church, where he continued a legacy of service that was instilled in him by his parents.
In his younger years he was a golfing buddy and a boating friend. Later he was the one at the Elks Lodge with five dollars on the game. His idea of rest was mowing his yard or tinkering in the garage. He played piano by ear and never met a gathering he couldn't improve.
He was preceded in death by his wife; his parents; his sister, Sue Thomson Willcut; his former son-in-law, Curt Knoth; his nephew, Mark Willcut; and his in-laws, Emma Louise (Swann) Tolbert and James Wesley Tolbert.
He is survived by his daughters, Kristi Summers (Zach) and Stephanie Culver (Chuck); seven grandchildren, Dylan Knoth (Hasna), Jesse Knoth, Kalli Knoth, Lily Bowser, Lucy Bowser, Austin Culver and Chase Culver; his great-grandson, Theo Knoth; his brother, Louis Jeriel "Jay" Summers, Jr.; his sister-in-law, Anne Summers; his nieces, Amy Grimm and Sarah Eiffert (Geoff); his nephew, Sam Willcut; cousins Sharon Garrison, Van Harrison Stokes, III, and Mary Jane Thompson; and a great many friends and relatives.
A Rosary and Mass will be held Wednesday, September 2, 2026, from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church, 218 N. Washington Street, Junction City, Kansas 66441.
Services in Malden will be held Saturday, September 12, 2026, beginning at 11:00 a.m. at St. Ann Parish Hall, 304 N. Douglass Street, Malden, Missouri 63863 with interment to follow at Memorial Park Cemetery, where he will rest beside Gayle.
In lieu of flowers or donations, the family asks for something else: your stories. If you knew John, please share it with us. That's what we'd like to have.
