Dolores Joyce Edwards

10-2008

Submitted by: Jo Aguirre

A graveside service for Dolores Close was held at 2 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 16, at Longwood Cemetery with the Rev. Roberta Shaffer officiating. Arrangements were under the direction of Trout Funeral Home and Crematory.

Dolores Joyce Edwards was born to Owen Evert and Beatrice Longmuir Edwards in Gowen, Okla., on July 20,1916 and passed away quietly on Oct. 12, 2008. The family lived briefly in Wetumka before moving to "Old Kaw City" in 1922. She had a sister Cleo and brother Owen (called Bill).

Her mother died when Dolores was six and her Paternal grandmother, Rachel Pearl Edwards moved in to help raise the children.

Dolores attended school in Kaw City, where her father taught band and vocal music. She graduated in 1935. She attended Oklahoma State A&M at Stillwater and later Sacramento, Calif., Junior College.

During World War II she worked on the B-29s as a welder, employed by Cessna in Wichita, Kansas. She had also worked at Safeway Stores and in the circulation department of the Ponca City News during her lifetime.

She married Master Sgt. Laurence Edward Close on July 20, 1946 in the Methodist Church of Ponca City. Their first home was in Riverside, Calif. They were next stationed in Tokyo, Japan, where they welcomed their first child, Linda Joyce. They returned to California, this time to be stationed in Sacramento. They settled into their newly built home and soon after welcomed the birth of Frances Diane and later Laurence Edward Jr. "Larry." Their next assignment was France. They lived in a small village where they could see the top of the Eiffel Tower on a clear day. While in France they took road trips to Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, and England. They returned to Oklahoma where Laurence took a job with an oil company. That job led to homes in Kaw City, Pawhuska, Cherokee, and Kingfisher before returning to Laurence's home town of Ponca City in 1961 to work for Evans and Throop.

Dolores grew up in the Kaw City Christian Church so it was natural that her family became members of the First Christian Church in Ponca City in 1962. Dolores was an active member of that church for many years. She and her husband were members of the Friendly Class. She also served as sponsor for the junior choir and filled in as a Sunday school class teacher when needed. She was a member and served offices in CWF.

She proudly served as a member of First Christian Church's Centennial committee in 1993.

She was known fondly as "Grandma Dee" by her grandchildren Justin and Lacey, and as "Dee" to her close friends. She is remembered for her love of iris flowers, her skilled sewing, her lemon and her cherry pies, and her beautiful handwriting. Dolores was known for her sharp wit, her strong spirit, her dedication to her family, and her unlimited love.

She battled Alzheimer's for the last years of her life.

She is survived by two daughters, Linda Close of Alamogordo, N.M., and Diane Vineyard and husband Mike of Olathe, Kan.; son, Larry Close and wife Marcie of Ponca City; two grandchildren, Justin Close and wife Alison of Tulsa and Lacey Close of Ponca City; and two nephews and one niece.

Dolores was preceded in death by her husband Laurence in 1988; her parents; her grandmother, Rachel; her brother, Bill; and her sister, Cleo.

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