Carla J. VanLandingham, age 73, of Warrensburg, MO passed away Saturday, June 12, 2021, at Western Missouri Medical Center.

She was born March 16, 1948, in Cleveland, OH, the daughter of Byron and Ruth (Moore) Conway.

After graduating from Parma High School in 1966, she went on to attend Kent State University in Kent, OH for 2 years. In the fall of 1968, she transferred to UCLA, where she met Richard Dale VanLandingham, the love of her life. On March 2, 1969, they were united in marriage in Las Vegas, NV.

They then began a 4 year journey when Rick enlisted with the USAF. At the end of his 4 years in the Air Force, they welcomed their daughter Heather into their lives. Carla then followed Rick to Texas where they spent many years. While there, she worked for Republic Insurance Co. before being transferred to Johnson City, TN in 1979. While there, they welcomed their second daughter Tamara and Carla earned her Bachelors of Arts from East Tennessee State University.

In 1993, they moved back to Texas where they became heavily involved in the Emergency response, tornado chasers group. They also joined First Christian Church Allen where they spent many years actively involved as Deacons and Elders. After retirement, they moved to Idaho where they had a piece of land, a couple dogs and horses. She developed an interest in Ham Radios, obtaining her own call sign, and became active in the Office of Emergency Management where they assisted emergency communications for missing campers and weather alerts. In 2021, Carla moved to Missouri to be closer to her daughters.

Carla is survived by her daughters Heather (Michael) Rowland and Tamara (Greg) Downs; and her grandchildren Sean, Sarah, John, Aidan, and Rosalyn.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Richard; her parents, Byron and Ruth; and all her furbabies.

Her love of art, photography, and animals will live on with her family and friends. Her fun and crazy horse camp songs will never be forgotten. Though she is missed greatly, we rejoice that she is with Rick in Heaven.

Funeral services will be held at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 19, 2021 at Sweeney-Phillips & Holdren Funeral Home in Warresnburg, MO with Chaplain Bill Petree officiating. The family will receive friends from 4:00 p.m. until service time at the funeral home.

Graveside services will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, June 26, 2021 at Greenwood Cemetery in Spirit Lake, ID.

Memorial contributions in Carla's name are suggested to the Alzheimer's Association (https://bit.ly/3gvwOiP) or the German Shepherd Rescue of Central Texas ( https://bit.ly/3wyCMVJ ).