Frances 'Granny' Goodnight

Frances Geraldine Meigs Goodnight, age 90, departed this world for Heaven on April 26, 2023. She was born in Park Hill, OK to Cooie Meigs Sr. and Gertie Jones Gibson Meigs on November 11, 1932. She was the second great-granddaughter to Cherokee Chief John Ross. Frances was proud of her Cherokee heritage and studied her family genealogy for many years. She graduated from Bagley High School in Tahlequah and then went on to Northeastern State University where she obtained a bachelors in education and a masters in counseling. During her teaching career, she taught 7th and 8th grade as well as high school business and typing in Anderson, MO, Joplin, MO, and Porter, OK. While teaching in Anderson, she laid eyes upon Missourian Loy Allman Goodnight for the first time. They married on June 6, 1955 and shared 34 years of marriage until his death in 1989. Frances had a love for baking and she enjoyed canning every summer to have plenty of homegrown foods on hand in the winter. She developed her own recipes and knew just when to add a little of this or that! Her Sunday dinner table was usually spread with roast, taters, fried okra, candied carrots, jello surprise and yeast rolls that were rolled out before she headed to church…and for dessert, strawberries and crust or maybe a Cushaw squash pie. Frances retired from teaching in 1970 due to loss of her voice, but she never idled the rest of her life. She had a servant’s heart as she spent many hours caring for her family and friends. In her spare time, she enjoyed calligraphy, painting, and ceramics. She became ‘Granny’ in 1983 and 1984, and from that point on, she loved on her grandsons immeasurably. Frances spent the majority of her life attending and serving in the church. Most recently, she attended New Hope Baptist Church in Muskogee. She was saved as a teen and had a bold unashamed desire to tell others about Christ. She looked forward to the day that she could hear her Lord say, “Well done my good and faithful servant”. Frances was preceded in death by her husband, Loy; her parents, Cooie Sr. and Gertie Meigs; brother, Cooie Meigs, Jr.; sisters, Jewell Mahaney and Mary Jane Meigs; and niece, Belinda McCormick. She is survived by her brother, John Meigs; daughter, Kathy Kaad and husband Michael; son, Phillip Goodnight and wife Melinda; grandsons, Eric Goodnight and wife Jessica, and Patrick Goodnight and wife Brittany; and four great-grandchildren, Isiah, Haley, Jacee, and Evelyn; several beloved nieces and nephews; and a host of other family members and friends. A celebration of Frances’ life will be 3PM, Monday, May 1, 2023 at Ross Cemetery with Pastor Don Blankenship officiating. In lieu of flowers the family would be honored if donations were made to the Gideons International, PO Box 204, Muskogee, OK 74403

Frances 'Granny' Goodnight

November 11, 1932 - April 26, 2023