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Teresa Louise Mills was born on October 27, 1956, in Elk City, Oklahoma, and passed away on January 27, 2026, in Shawnee, Oklahoma. She was the beloved daughter of Bert and Margaret (Kauk) Nichols.
Teresa grew up in Elk City and was a 1974 graduate of Elk City High School. Following high school, she continued her education at St. Gregory’s University in Shawnee, where she earned her associate’s degree. Teresa went on to build a long and respected career in banking and financial services. She worked for many years at Prague National Bank and later at Arvest Bank before joining Preferred Management Corporation in 2011, where she remained until her retirement in 2020.
A faithful Catholic, Teresa regularly attended St. Benedict Catholic Church in Shawnee. Her faith was central to her life—she carried her Rosary with her always and lived with a servant’s heart. Teresa was a natural caregiver, deeply compassionate, and unfailingly generous with her time and love.
Teresa truly loved life and faced every season with strength and determination. Even through a courageous 13-year battle with illness, she maintained a strong will to live and fight, meeting each day with resilience, grace, and faith. Her perseverance and quiet courage were an inspiration to all who knew her.
She found joy in reading, sewing and gardening, but she was especially known for her remarkable cooking. Her kitchen was a place of comfort and welcome, and she was always ready to feed friends and family, no matter the hour. She cherished her friendships deeply, holding those relationships close to her heart.
Above all else, Teresa was a devoted mother and grandmother. She adored her three daughters—Sarah, Ellen, and Alyssa—and poured endless love, encouragement, and support into their lives and the lives of her grandchildren.
Teresa was preceded in death by her parents and her sister, Monica Sue Nichols.
Those left to cherish her memory include her daughter, Sarah Thompson and her husband, Ken, and their children, Abby, Zach, Cameron, and Cora; her daughter, Ellen Mills; her daughter, Alyssa Battige and her husband, Bobby, and their children, Rayngle, Rody, Emelyn, Everett, and Lyla; her brother, David Nichols; her sisters, Cathy Gardner and her husband, Greg, and Rita Wally and her husband, John; along with a host of nieces, nephews, extended family members, and many dear friends.
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