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Helen Rae Westfahl, former Okeene resident, passed away in Fairview on July 10, 2024 just nine days before her ninety-fifth birthday. Helen was born to L. C. and Callie Lee Thurman Westfahl on July 19, 1929, on their farm southeast of Okeene. She was the eleventh of their sixteen children. In 1930, the Westfahl family moved to a new farm west of Okeene, across the road from the Liberty School. This was where Helen attended grade school. Starting with her seventh grade year, Helen attended school at Homestead and liked playing on the basketball team. She was crowned Okeene Whea-Esta Queen in 1946 and graduated from Homestead in 1947.
In the 1950’s, Helen worked in Okeene as a bookkeeper for the Champlin Station and Farmer’s Co-op. In 1957, she moved to Midwest City and found a job as a teller at the First National Bank. Helen took up bowling and became good enough that in 1966, she competed in the WIBC Queens Bowling Tournament, finishing fifth among women bowlers in Oklahoma. In February, 1966, Helen accepted an offer to work for the Tinker Credit Union, and remained with them until her retirement in July, 1989.
Helen liked to see new places in the U.S. Among the locations she visited were Catalina Island, Atlantic City, Nashville, Graceland, Albuquerque Balloon Festival, Branson, and Las Vegas. Helen also loved Country music (especially Hank Thompson), playing casino slot machines, and Elvis. But most of all, she loved being with her family. Helen never married, so she considered her nieces and nephews to be her children.
Preceding Helen in death were her parents; sisters, Erma, Jane Ann, Dessa, Mildred, Betty, Alice, Evelyn, and Barbara; brothers, James, Roger, Raymond, and Lester and good friends, Mary Nichols and Sue Jaynes.
Helen is survived by her sisters, Marjory Winter of Enid and Thelma McKinnis of McHenry, Maryland; her brother, Harold Westfahl of Enid, and twenty-nine nieces and nephews.
The family would like to thank the Fairview Fellowship Home and Humanity Hospice for the loving care given to Helen.
Funeral service will be Saturday, July 20, 2024 at 10:00 a.m. at the Methodist Church in Okeene with burial at Roselawn Cemetery with Joe Roever officiating. There will be no viewing. Arrangements are by Lanman Funeral Home, Inc. of Okeene. www.lanmanmemorials.com Facebook: Lanman Funeral Home Inc. Casket bearers will be Dennis Westfahl, Ronald Goforth, Larry Brownsworth, Martin Goni, Nathan Billings and Daniel Roever.
Helen’s expressed desire was that in lieu of flowers, donations be made in her memory to the American Cancer Society or the American Lung Association through the funeral home.
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