Sammy Orman Campbell

Sammy Orman Campbell, 75, of Independence, Missouri passed away on Saturday, January 6, 2024, at St Luke’s Hospital in Kansas City. Sam was the first child born to Thomas Eugene Campbell and Dorothy Tanner Campbell on August 24, 1948, in Abilene, Texas. Sam lived in various states, New Mexico, Arizona, Kansas, and Missouri. He was baptized into the Southern Baptist church in Farmington, New Mexico at around 10 years of age, possessing a strong testimony of Jesus. Throughout his life, he served the Lord in various ways. In college, he was Associate Pastor of Baptist Student Union. He led Sunday school classes. He was an active member of the Woods Chapel United Methodist Church in Lee’s Summit, having in the past, led a monthly Sunday team to deliver services to Wilshire Nursing Home in Lee’s Summit, MO.

He is preceded in death by his parents, Tom and Dorothy Campbell and his stepson Jordan Sparks.  

Sam met DuVonne Wright Sparks in June of 1991, and they have enjoyed a very blessed 30-year marriage. Sam is survived in life by DuVonne, brother Nelson Craig Campbell (Fredda), sister Leesa Campbell Deere (Jack), daughter Tamara Campbell Wilson and husband Brian; son Andrew T Campbell, stepson Jared Sparks, and stepdaughter Tonnia Sparks Shearhart.  Sam has 4 living grandchildren, of whom he has adored, Amanda Shearhart, Morgan Shearhart, Turner Campbell, and Ariah Campbell.

Sam played quarterback in high school football and was active in baseball from his youth.  Luckily his father was a high school coach, so he had access to sports equipment and good coaching.  Sam went to Grand Canyon University after high school. He also attended Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona, hoping to go into clerical ministry and seminary.  He changed focus sometime later and went into managing his uncle’s Indian Arts Trading Post, chemical sales and eventually landed in health care. He was a distributor for various orthopedic, chiropractic and first aid type products. He was CEO of a local orthopedic company called Summit Medical and mentored many sales representatives.  He found joy and loved teaching sales techniques and tips to his colleagues and used these parallels, when talking about God’s scriptural lessons. He worked as an orthopedic implant specialist with Smith and Nephew, Biomet and Wright Medical companies. He loved working with physicians and medical staff. 

Sam enjoyed anything sports related and was quite a trivia expert on facts pertaining to almost any sport.  He was also known to tell stories. It could be memories from the past, historical facts, jokes or family traditions. Sam delighted in seeing his grandchildren and liked teaching them history.   He and DuVonne are avid KC Chiefs fans. He loved to golf with family and his wife, until 2011, when he was assaulted outside their home in Albuquerque by an unknown suspected car thief.  Sam sustained injuries from this assault that had permanent effects with his balance and other health concerns. In 2016 he suffered a heart attack, which began a long list of physical disabilities.  

Despite the health concerns, he loved time with family and church friends.  Sam was a strong man of faith, able to apply calm and optimistic approaches to life’s adversity. He was known to be a man who always looked at the positive.  He will be extremely missed by all those he connected with in life and forever loved by his wife, DuVonne and all of his family.