Sumner Stuart Loomis

Sumner Stuart Loomis, 86, left this life September 17th, 2023, at the age of 86 at Oakwood Manor, Brooksville, Mississippi.  A funeral service is planned for Thursday, September 21, 2023, at 10:30 a.m. at Brooksville Mennonite Church in Brooksville, MS. Interment will follow in the church cemetery. Visitation will be held at the church Wednesday from 6:30 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. Memorials may be made to Oakwood Manor, 55 Oakwood Drive, Brooksville, MS  39739. Cockrell Funeral Home is honored to be entrusted with arrangements.

He was born May 11, 1937, to Sumner and Marjorie (Lyon) Loomis in Rockford, Illinois. Friends and family knew him as 'Stuart' since he shared his given name with his father. Stuart followed his parents around the country, growing up in several Midwestern states. At an early age he was noted to be inquisitive and precocious, making friends with learned adults who were much older. There are many stories of antics that he got up to as a child, like when he built a small jet engine and attached it to his bicycle.

Stuart attended church from a small child and was introduced to his Savior. He gave his heart to the Lord in a childlike manner during those years. His faith was sorely challenged in the years that followed. He looked to a time of consecration at age 32, when he met the Lord in a meaningful way.

College took Stuart to Cookeville, Tennessee where he met his life companion, Delois Carlisle. They were joined in holy matrimony on June 30, 1956. They were blessed with 67 years together and three children.

Stuart completed his formal education as an electrical engineer in Chattanooga, Tennessee. His inquisitive mind led him to experimentation with some newfangled gadgets called transistors and silicone-based semiconductors. This interest caught the attention of the people at NASA, who soon recruited him to work in Huntsville, Alabama. He had the opportunity to work with the German scientists which prompted him to learn the German language. This rapid upward trajectory in his career left Stuart spiritually famished. He came to doubt the existence of God, partly due to the lack of people that he knew who truly lived the teachings of the Bible. He came to the point of seriously contemplating suicide, so great was his despair. But God, in his mercy, introduced him to the Anabaptist people. He discovered his spiritual home among the people of God at Macon, Mississippi. He and his wife cast their lot together with the children of God in January of 1971. He was faithful until his death.

Stuart faced many challenges in his Christian journey. From trying to make a living as an engineer in an agricultural community, to losing almost all of his earthly possessions in a tornado, to raising three rambunctious teenagers, God provided a way through. It was not an easy life. Perhaps that is why he had a special sparkle in his eye when he spoke about Heaven.

One trial in which God made a way that is especially precious to Stuart happened when he was forced to sit for an engineering exam that covered all disciplines: electrical, civil, chemical and mechanical. Much of the material covered was outside of his expertise. It was clear to him that Jesus sat beside him as he took the test and caused him to pass.

Stuart put his love of learning to use teaching school and he taught for a number of years in Missouri and Arizona.

Stuart found purpose in retirement by sharing his passion for our Creator by traveling to many of our congregations giving science-based talks 'proving that He (God) is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.' (Hebrews 11 :6b) He also shared with many people who were struggling with emotional issues, especially children.

Stuart leaves behind to grieve his passing his wife, Delois, Brooksville, Mississippi; three children, Mark and Ruth Loomis of Ayden, North Carolina; Matthew and Angela Loomis of Repton, Alabama; Susan and Kenton Schmidt of Dumas, Arkansas; one sister Diana King of Springfield, Missouri; one niece Kathryn Ansley; eleven grandchildren; twenty-two great grandchildren; three great-great grandchildren. He is preceded in death by his parents and one grandson.