Roger William Sanders

Roger William Sanders was born in Springfield, Missouri on June 20, 1950. He passed away on November 5, 2018. His parents were Hallie (Firestone) and Roy Lee Sanders. Roger attended elementary and high school in Nixa, Missouri. He received a Bachelor of Arts from College of the Ozarks and then a Master's Degree from the University of Michigan. He received his PhD in plant science from the University of Texas. In 1980, he married Connie Stanley and they had two children – Nathan Clark and Rachel Leigh. Roger worked at Ohio State as a post doctorate and then accepted a job at Fairchild Tropical Garden in Miami, Florida. He worked as a consultant and also for Botanical Research Institute of Texas in Fort Worth, Texas. After moving from Texas, Roger taught in the biology department of Bryan College in Tennessee. The last few years he was assistant director of CORE Academy of Science. He and Connie retired in 2016 and moved to Arkansas. Roger is survived by his wife, Connie; son, Nathan (Karen), and grandson, Jonas all of Seattle; and daughter, Leigh of Phoenix. He is also survived by a brother, J.E. Scroggins of Humansville, Missouri; two sisters, Linda Bandy (Wayne) of Kansas City, and Gail Klesen of Bella Vista, as well as many nieces and nephews. Funeral services will be 10 a.m., Thursday, November 8, 2018 at Wasson Funeral Home in Siloam Springs, Arkansas, with Pastor Bruce Boehmer officiating. Burial will be at 2:30 p.m., Thursday, November 8, 2018 at George's Creek Cemetery in Yellville, Arkansas. Visitation will be from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m., Thursday, November 8, 2018 at Wasson Funeral Home. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to CORE Academy of Science. To sign the online guestbook, visit www.wassonfuneralhome.com.