Vincent Mitchell Lawson

Vincent Mitchell Lawson

Chapel Hill Funeral Home

Lawson, Vincent Mitchell, age 85, went home to be with the Lord on the 21st day of June, 2016, at 4:20 p.m., in Fort Worth, Texas. He was born on March 30, 1931 to Charles Wesley Lawson and Elva Naomi (Wiggins) Lawson in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. There were 10 children in the Lawson family, including Vincent's twin brother, Leonard, who died as an infant and was buried in Rose Hill Cemetery in Oklahoma City. Vincent often said that he had two birthdays, the 29th and 30th, because he and Leonard were born around midnight. Being the oldest boy in the family, Vincent was referred to by his parents, and by his brothers and sisters, as "Son". At one time, Vincent's father worked for American Body & Trailer on Exchange Avenue, just as Vincent did, and his mother worked for and retired from Wilson and Company, a meat packing plant, near Stockyards. Although the Lawson family moved around some, Vincent primarily grew up on the south side of town at 908 S. Barnes. Later, the family moved to S.W. 26th Street just off of Pennsylvania Avenue.

Vincent attended Bethany Grade School, where he learned to play the French horn in the school band. At the time, the Lawson family lived on Beaver Street in Bethany, in the 500 block. Vincent also attended Westwood Grade School on Exchange Avenue, Lincoln Grade School in N.E. Oklahoma City, Jackson Junior High School, and Central High School. When Vincent was in high school, he worked for Western Union downtown, delivering telegrams by bicycle and sometimes by car. Vincent also served in the United States Marine Corps Reserve from October 10, 1949 to February 13, 1951 and received an honorable discharge. He was stationed at Camp Pendleton in California. While in the service, Vincent was told that he had only one kidney, but later in life it was discovered that he had two kidneys after all.

Vincent met Olla Janice Wilkins at the old Grace Baptist Church on S.W. 25th Street in the late 1940s, and they were married at the church on Christmas Eve in 1951 in a double wedding ceremony with Junior and Pat Chiles. Vincent and Janice raised their family of 4 girls in Oklahoma City on the south side of town, at 4025 S.W. 25th Street and 1617 Birch Street. Vincent and Janice divorced in the early 1970s. Vincent went on to marry and divorce two more times, but at the time of his death, he was not married.

Vincent worked as a welder for American Body & Trailer and would often walk home for dinner. Sometimes, the girls would meet him at the street corner to walk him home, and that seemed to make him happy. Vincent also took odd jobs, such as painting houses, just to try to make ends meet. Vincent worked the night shift and often worked overtime when it was offered to him. Being a welder, Vincent made the girls a bicycle built for two out of junk bicycle parts, and this made them the envy of the neighborhood. He also made the girls some wooden stilts out of some scrap two by fours. One time, he brought Hershey candy bars home and put them on top of the refrigerator and would not let the girls have one until they finished their dinner. Candy was a rare treat in the household, at the time. On the 4th of July, Vincent would take the girls to the store and let them pick out their own pint of ice cream (chocolate, strawberry, or vanilla), and the family would sit out in the yard and watch the neighborhood fireworks go off and eat their ice cream. When the girls were a little bit older, Vincent started working for Time-DC Freight Line, where he made a better living and worked for a number of years. Still working nights, however, his sleep would often be disturbed by having to get out of bed to drive the girls to school. Eventually, when Time-DC went out of business, he worked for other trucking companies. Later in life, after he retired, Vincent continued to work a variety of jobs, including insulating grain elevators underground and long haul interstate truck driving, and he worked well into his 70s.

Vincent loved to fish and liked being outside, and often took the girls on fishing trips when they were young. He taught them how to scale and clean their own fish, but their mother made them do it at the back of the yard. Vincent also enjoyed visiting his "Mother" and "Daddy," and he usually took the girls with him on Sundays to see their grandparents. It was not uncommon for everyone to gather around the television to watch Bonanza, Lassie, or Disney's Wonderful World of Color, before Vincent and the girls went home. Vincent simply loved to sit, drink coffee, and visit. He was primarily oriented towards his parents, but he cared about and loved all of his brothers and sisters and was especially close to his brother Paul and sister Betty.

When the girls were little, just as the Lawson family often did as a group, Vincent's and Paul's families would go camping together in the summertime at Platt National Park (now called the Chickasaw National Recreation Area), in Sulphur, Oklahoma. The kids loved to swim and play on their dads' giant truck innertubes, and everyone enjoyed the good cooking and eating out of doors. Vincent's and Paul's families loved to go to Flower Park and block off the waterfall. If all of the Lawson family happened to be group camping in Rock Creek Campground, then the families would meet up and the men would usually find a way to go fishing. The kids just wanted to swim, and they preferred Cold Springs Campground.

Vincent's life was simple, but far from easy, yet he was resilient and seemed to take most difficulties in stride. It didn't take very much to make him happy. He often said that he would be happy living on the side of a riverbank. The girls used to think he was teasing, but later on were convinced that he really did mean it. Vincent was an outgoing person who had no difficulty striking up a conversation with anyone, and people generally seemed to like him. Vincent loved to sit and drink coffee at Denny's and other truck stops with his brother Paul, after they both got off work in the early morning hours. Vincent also loved to sing, and he had a nice singing voice. When the girls were little, he led the song services at Jones Grove Baptist Church (now McKinley Avenue Baptist Church), where he was also a Deacon at one time. If Vincent wasn't singing, he was often heard to be whistling a tune – usually, something like a George Jones' or Hank Williams' country song. Sometimes, Vincent would do the "Lawson Stomp" for the girls – sort of a tap dance with a kick at the end. Vincent played the harmonica, too, and he was pretty good at it. In his old age, Vincent enjoyed singing solos at chapel and church services, especially a song called "I Know a Man Who Can". He sang the song for the girls one time, and he said the people at chapel and church really enjoyed hearing him sing. He also sang the song in church in Oklahoma City one time, and he gave his testimony.

Vincent is survived by his daughter Deborah Latham and husband Mike of Arcadia, Oklahoma; his daughter Cheryl Tolson and husband Steve of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; his daughter Linda Brewster and husband Brian of Moore, Oklahoma; and his daughter Vicki Wheeler and husband Charles of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Vincent is also survived by 7 grandchildren – Terry Melton, Kara Fenwick, Jennifer Wade, Abbie Brewster, Blake Brewster, Christa Smith, and Gary Wheeler; as well as 10 great grandchildren – Nathan Melton, Gracie Melton, Kayla Fenwick, Jaicee Fenwick, Ansley Fenwick, Logan Wade, Lane Wade, Evan Smith, Justin Smith, and Trevor Wheeler.

Vincent is also survived by his sister Betty Turner of Oklahoma City; his sister Mary Jane Isbill of Midwest City; his sister Helen Hill of Moore; his sister Norma Williams and husband Ronnie of Wewoka; his brother Charles Lee Lawson and wife Sylvia of Blanchard; and his brother-in-law Phil Harris of Oklahoma City. Vincent is also survived by numerous nieces and nephews, as well as other family members.

Vincent is preceded in death by his parents Charles and Elva Lawson; his twin brother Leonard McKinney Lawson; his brother Ronald Ray Lawson; his brother Paul Wesley Lawson; his sister Charlene Marie Harris; and other family members.

A special thank you to Vincent's primary care physician at the VA, Dr. Uma Rao, in Oklahoma City, his wonderful caregivers at AllFaith Home Care in Oklahoma City – Brenda, his nurse, Kiki, his aide, and Tasha, his physical therapist, and special thanks to the staff of Lake Worth Nursing & Rehabilitation in Fort Worth, Texas, where Vincent spent his final years and where he made a lot of friends. Vincent spent 52 days in the hospital before his last hospitalization, and the family would like to thank the doctors and staff of JPS Hospital in Fort Worth, as well as the doctors and staff of Kindred Hospital in Fort Worth. Vincent was admitted to JPS Hospital on Father's Day, and was visited by his daughters, Debbie, Linda, and Vicki on that day. Vincent went downhill quickly, but he was brave in making his decisions in a conference call with his daughter Cheryl and the doctors and staff of JPS. His nurse Jessica said that he passed away peacefully.

CHAPEL HILL FUNERAL HOME 8701 Northwest Expressway OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA 73162 (405) 721-3182