Mary Lou Williams

Mary Lou (Harris) Williams came into this world on July 6, 1932, most assuredly kicking and screaming up a storm. The entirety of her life was lived exclusively in Tulsa County and almost all of it in Collinsville - where, at one time, she knew three-fourths of the town's residents and was related to the remainder. Mary was a daughter, a sister, a wife, an aunt, a mother, and (her favorite role) a grandmother. She absolutely adored her grandchildren and, later, her great-grandchildren and her great-great-grandchildren. Her daughters were convinced they played second fiddle to the grandkids. Mary loved spoiling her grandchildren and, when they were little, sending them home to her daughters to straighten out the mess she'd gleefully made. Payback! Mary's other favorite thing to do was be outside, whether it was mowing or gardening or just sitting and watching cars go up and down the road. Outdoors was her truly happy place, right up until her passing. Mary also thoroughly enjoyed being in charge - of anything - and telling everyone what to do and how to do it. Always one to lead with her mouth instead of her heart, she was always convinced she was the smartest person in the room. All you had to do was ask her and she'd tell you. Many an eye almost rolled out of its socket during those exchanges with her. The last several years, Mary had lost most of her vision and her hearing; and, due to arthritis and neuropathy, her hands had become more nuisance than useful. She could no longer feed herself, read, or watch or hear her sports games on TV. Her world had shrunk and there was nothing anyone could do to make it better. She absolutely hated not being able to participate in life. One of the last things she asked for was to be baptized. We made that happen for her this past May 7th - the same day, 28 years earlier, her husband and our father died. Mary was on this earth 93 years, 3 months and 4 days. She passed peacefully on October 13, 2025. She was preceded in death by her parents, William Monroe "Bill" and Orpha Mae (Layman) Harris; her brother, William Monroe Jr. and his wife, Doris Faye (Evans); her sister, Marjorie Lee Harris; her favorite son-in-law, Ronald Wayne McMillian; and her husband, Burlen Dale Williams. She leaves behind her three daughters, Pamela Karen McMillian, Cia Lyn Thomas, and Cynthia Ann Summers; four grandchildren, Stephanie McMillian Kirkland (Jay), Brandon Lane Thomason (Toni, dec.), Eric Matthew Hambrick, and J.C. Price (Julie); four great-grandchildren, Paige Mckenzie Suter (Stephan), Morgan Leann Aman (Tim), Camden Lane Thomason, and Jaxton Wayne Kirkland; and three great-great-grandchildren, Shepherd James Suter, Oliver Paige Suter, and Remington Lane Aman. She also leaves behind three nieces and numerous relatives in Oklahoma and Missouri. Mary, like most of us, wasn't a perfect person. But she was a loved person and was given the gift of a blessed life.

Mary Lou Williams

July 6, 1932 - October 13, 2025