Mrs. Ru'Da Looney

Ru’da Bernadette Looney (nee Jack then Yadullah) was born at Bethany Medical Center in Kansas City, Kansas on May 21, 1976, to the late Jimmie Yadullah and Donna Chase (formerly Jack then Yadullah, nee Bradley). She graduated from Shawnee Mission West in 1994 having done cross country and ROTC, and she started classes at Johnson County Community College and also joined the Marines as a reserve officer. She had her first child, John, in 1996. While in the Marines, she attended a class taught by Gunnery Sergeant Joardy Looney, Sr. At the end of an otherwise uneventful class, Joardy decided to end the class with “And how many licks does it take to get to the middle of the Tootsie Roll Pop? Three. Class is dismissed”. Ru’da went up to him and said that his statement was incorrect and playful banter ensued. Ru’da always vehemently denied that she was ever flirting during this moment, but one thing led to another, and Joardy and Ru’da wed on October 13th, 1999, in Vegas and then on November 13th, 1999, at Grace Community Baptist Church. Coming from two big families themselves, they began growing their own large family and Ru’da gave birth in 2000, 2003, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, and 2016, each birth a contribution to the lively Looney home. As a stay-at-home mother, Ru’da was very involved in her children’s lives, which included their educational lives. After witnessing a former principal award not so deserving students with bicycles for perfect attendance while neglecting the academic achievements of other students including her own children, she took it upon herself to go before the school board each time they had a meeting and advocate for the creation of a parent teacher association (PTA). She was successful in her endeavors and ran the PTA for about a decade. She brought forth many initiatives at her children’s school such as Bingo for Books to increase literacy and rewarding students for performing well enough academically to be on the honor roll and principal’s honor roll. The tenacity, faith, and smile that defined Ru’da Looney continued to break through even in her last few years which proved to be some of her hardest. While on her way to a doctor’s appointment with her two youngest children in the car, Ru’da was hit by a man who should not have been on the road because his license was suspended. Police showed up and essentially saw nothing wrong and let him go. After getting checked on in the hospital, Ru’da learned she was pregnant, but shortly after she miscarried. When trying to confide in medical professionals she thought were trustworthy, they dismissed her claims that there was any correlation between the car accident and her miscarriage because she would have been having a geriatric pregnancy while seemingly ignoring the fact that she had given birth to two healthy children carried to full term when she was 38 and 40 years old. After these back-to-back traumatic injustices, both her mood and health declined. She started losing mobility in her feet that progressively spread upward. Doctors were at a loss about what was happening. She lost her ability to walk during the pandemic and first got hospitalized Christmas Eve 2020 after losing consciousness. After returning home is when the diagnosis of ALS was officially given. Even while facing a terminal illness that continued to take more and more of the control Ru’da had over her body, she continued to fight. She continued to pray. She continued to smile. Doctors only gave her months to live in 2020. Clearly God had other plans, and the doctors did not consult about those plans. During those next six years, she saw three different children graduate from high schools, college, and graduate school; she saw off her first child to leave the United States; witnessed her first child get married; saw her children grow into the people she nurtured them to become; saw one of her children receive a highly competitive full-ride scholarship; and overall gave so much of herself even while so much was taken from her. There are so many milestones that are yet to be made, but being able to experience those milestones with her family meant so much to her, and her family felt that and will treasure those memories. Her legacy is only just beginning, and it is a beautiful thing to see. Ru' da Looney, passed away on April 10, 2026, at the home. Funeral Services will be held on Saturday, April 25, 2026, at 12:00pm Convenant Baptist Church. Interment Monday, April 27, 2026, Leavenworth National Cemetery. Visitation from 11:00am-12:00pm at the church. Services conducted by Lawrence A. Jones & Sons Funeral Chapel. Condolences may be shared on our website

Mrs. Ru'Da Looney

May 21, 1976 - April 10, 2026