Tony Joe Young, son of Bill and Emma (Rudd) Young, was born June 8, 1961, in Lilburn, Missouri and departed this life March 2, 2025, at the age of 63 at his home. Tony accepted Jesus as his Savior when he was young and was a member of the New Beginnings Baptist Church in Bucyrus, Missouri.
After graduating from high school in St. Louis MO, Tony joined the Navy as a corpsman and proudly served alongside the Marines for 9 years in the Philippines, Grenada, Virginia, California, and Tennessee. In 1985, he married Paula Donaway and welcomed daughter Melissa in December of 1986. Tony loved the Navy and planned to make it a career, but determined it was more important to be at home with his child after his wife’s tragic death in 1989. He and Melissa moved to St Louis while he was in school to become an EMT. He was blessed to have help from his and Paula’s parents in caring for Melissa. Soon after, Tony & Melissa moved to the Cabool area with Paula’s parents. He and his second wife, Kelly Head, met at Texas County Memorial Hospital where they were both employed. They were married on May 22, 1999 and welcomed son Ian and daughter Emily.
Tony worked many 24 hour shifts as an EMT while studying to be a paramedic and later graduated from Missouri State University as an RN. His skills were greatly appreciated by the hospital staff and patients. One coworker said, “I learned a lot about emergency medicine from Tony. He was confident and compassionate with patient care. I ended up working as a nurse in a level 1 Trauma Center, but Tony Young was hands down the BEST paramedic I ever met!” Several doctors that he worked with encouraged him to go on in his schooling to become a physician, but he thought he was too old. Many of his coworkers mentioned that he had a heart of gold and would have done anything for someone he cared about. He was always ready to help if you needed it or let you be if you didn’t. It was always a great shift. He always went the extra mile.
Tony was an avid sports fan and loved the Raiders. He went to a Chiefs/Raiders playoff game in 1999 and was quite proud to be wearing black & silver in that sea of red at Chiefs Kingdom. Coworkers and family both loved to get him started telling stories. There was sure to be laughter to follow. Tony was quiet, but when you got to know him, he had a great, but very dry, sense of humor – those quiet snickers! He had a strong handshake, a little smirk, and a twinkle in his eye. Tony had some of the most unbelievable stories about his younger, more adventurous years. There was the time Tony thought he had picked up a dead possum on the road, but it miraculously came back to life as they were driving down the highway. Tony loved animals of all kinds and he had a desire to someday reopen the Texas County Animal Shelter. He always had to stop and visit with any animals he saw and then be convinced to not take it home.
He is survived by his wife Kelly, daughters Melissa & Emily, son Ian, and grandchildren Skyla, Jaxon, & Jamison; brother Harvey (Dee, William, Zach and families); his 1st wife’s family, Pauline and Fred Donaway and her siblings (AND his beloved pets). Tony is preceded in death by his parents (Bill & Emma Young), one brother, Dennis, his wife Paula, his in-laws (James and Sharlene Head) and two preterm infants. Tony’s passing leaves a void in the hearts of his family, friends, and the countless individuals whose lives he touched. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made for funeral expenses, to theGideons, or St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.
