Kathleen "KaKa" Smith Obituary - Visitation & Funeral Information

Kathleen Smith, 99, passed away, on March 15, 2021 at St. Francis Hospital in Muskogee, Oklahoma. Kathleen was born on April 29, 1921 to Cleve Edward Cook and Cora Lee "Nannie" McCoy at the family farm home in Ft. Gibson, Oklahoma. She was the youngest of four siblings. Her father passed away before Kathleen was one year old. Kathleen was the first Cook or McCoy to graduate from high school. In 1939 she graduated with honors from Bagley High School in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. Soon after graduation, Kathleen got a job at the Oklahoma School for the Blind and moved to Muskogee. The decision to move to Muskogee proved to be one of fate for it was there that Kathleen was introduced to Carl Edwin Smith. She always loved cars and was enamored with Mr. Smith's 1936 V-8 Coupe. They were married on June 22, 1941- but, within six months, they were separated from each other as war spread across Europe and the Pacific. After Pearl Harbor, Edwin enlisted in the Coast Guard and was stationed in New York City. In 1942, Kathleen left Oklahoma for the first time in her life and took the train to New York City to be with her new husband. Kathleen became pregnant in 1944 and returned to Oklahoma for the birth of their son, Pete. She lived with her in-laws, Alfred and Bertha Smith, before renting a home for her new family. Needing day care for Pete so that she could work, Nannie moved in with her and stayed for another 27 years. Edwin was discharged from the Coast Guard in November 1945 and returned home to Muskogee where he worked for 35 years as a salesman for Wonder Bread. Their daughter, Myrna, was born in October of 1946. For the next 25 years, Kathleen worked at OSB, Jones Department Store, Sears and the Motter's Bookbinding Company. But she had always dreamed of something more fulfilling and exciting. Kathleen's dream finally came true in 1966 at the age of 45. She established a new business in her home and would spend the next 20 years as the very successful and happy owner of Kathleen's Wedding Service. Over those 20 years, she would help plan and orchestrate more than 1,300 weddings and become widely known in Northeastern Oklahoma as the "Marriage Lady in the Pink House". She sold the business in 1987 and retired with her husband. Kathleen also attended several very special weddings of her own. The first was the 1968 marriage of her daughter, Myrna to Larry New at OSU in Stillwater. Myrna and Larry live in Lawton, Oklahoma with their two sons, Kelly and his wife Jennifer and two sons, Carson and Gunner and Marty and his wife Janette and their two sons, Jacob and Isaac. The second wedding was the 1968 marriage of their son, Pete to Betty Croll in Tulsa. They currently live and have retired in Henderson, Nevada and have two children. Kimberly is married to Jim Doyle and they live in Orange, California with their two children - Katie and Jake. Joe is married to Gayle Plus and they have three children - Fayth, Bella and Jack. They reside in Orlando, Florida. Kathleen was also involved in the lives of her sibling's children: Billy Johnson, Sharon Hazleton, Eddie Cook and his wife Billy, Esther and her husband Kent Neel, Curt Cook and Chip Gillispie. Kathleen's interests and hobbies were many and quite diverse. She loved travel, to read, to have her morning devotion, to go on bus and car rides, to decorate her home for whatever holiday month was in season and to explore garage sales to find her treasures. There were so many happy times and blessed events in Kathleen's 99 years on this Earth - and she remembered and was thankful for each of them. But not all days were always happy days. Her Mother passed away in 1971. Both of her big sisters, Leona and Helen, also passed away leaving her without her two best friends. Her brother Charley's death, along with that of his wife, Margie, was more than losing her only brother and next-door neighbor. She literally worshiped Charley, who was her mentor and idol - and the only father figure she ever had. In 1982, her husband, Edwin, developed colon cancer and courageously battled the disease for more than 25 years. This difficult period took its toll on her. At the time of his passing in 2007, at the age of 86, they had been together as a married couple for 66 years. She lived the wonderful retirement life in the Coburn Circle Addition of Muskogee for some 30 plus years. Her neighbors became dear friends and the focal point of her social life. It was apparent that everyone truly enjoyed being with and caring for each other, sharing experiences together and basically taking care of and looking after one another – especially Kathleen. For that comforting experience, her family is deeply grateful and most appreciative to all the neighbors in Coburn Circle who also loved our Kathleen Smith. A celebration of Kathleen’s life will be 2PM, Saturday, March 20, 2021 at Cornerstone Funeral Home Chapel with former Chaplain John Trent presiding along with Rev. Matt Kelly of Letitia Baptist Church in Lawton, Oklahoma. Funeral services are under the direction of Cornerstone Funeral Home, 1830 N. York Street, Muskogee, OK. Condolences may be made to the family online at www.cornerstoneofmuskogee.com.

Kathleen "KaKa" Smith

April 29, 1921 - March 15, 2021