Delores Taylor Smith Obituary - Visitation & Funeral Information

Funeral services for Delores Taylor Smith will be held Tuesday, May 31, 2022 at 2:00 PM at the Mason High School Gymnasium. Interment will follow at the Highland Cemetery of Okemah. Delores Taylor Smith was born, October 19, 1941 in Sallisaw, Oklahoma to Orman Hamilton Taylor and Ima Marie Edgemon. She passed away Friday, May 27, 2022 in Shawnee, Oklahoma at the age of 80. Delores attended McKee School through 8th grade and later graduated from Sallisaw High School. Upon graduation, she attended Connors State College for two years where she was crowned football homecoming queen, graduating in 1961. After Connors, Delores went on to Oklahoma State University, where you could find her dancing with her uncle Glenn “Cat” Taylor and Wes Watkins. While at OSU, she was a member of the Rodeo Team and ran track. While attending OSU and rodeoing, she caught the eye of Jimmy Smith, a young good looking steer wrestler. On September 8, 1962 they were married in Vian, Oklahoma. Making their home in Okemah. Delores and Jimmy welcomed Jamie Maria on September 25, 1963. In 1964, Delores and Jimmy bought their homeplace in Castle, Oklahoma. In 1967, Delores received her Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education and Physical Education from NSU. In 1969, Delores was hired as a Mason Eagle teacher and on December 21, 1973, son Justin James was born. Delores later decided to pursue her 2nd bachelor’s degree in Home Economics graduating from ECU in Ada. While teaching at Mason, Delores taught positions in both the Elementary and High School. She coached 3rd-6th grade girls basketball where she taught the importance of fundamentals, coached high school girls basketball, volleyball, softball and track. She also taught Home Economics. Delores was a great coach, no doubt, but her true passion in teaching was Home Economics, where she taught her students the importance of life skills, such as cake decorating, sewing and cooking. She even allowed her students to bring fresh caught or killed meat and she would teach them how to prepare it. Throughout the years during the summers, Delores with Jamie and Jim would host barrel clinics, teaching and coaching kids. It was truly a family affair with Memon and Ernestine running concessions. While teaching, Delores trained and rode numerous barrel horses. She qualified and won buckles, saddles and prize money throughout her career on numerous horses. Barrel racing was truly her life’s passion and nothing made her happier then hauling to a rodeo or barrel race with Jamie, Jennifer and Garett and later on with Jayci and Odessa. Delores was an amazing wife. She was an awesome mom, wonderful mother in law and the most loving Meme. She loved watching her grandkids play sports, rodeo and hang out in the barn playing with their many animals. She will be dearly missed by all who knew and loved her. She is preceded in death by her parents, Orman and Ima Taylor; uncle, John Bill Taylor and wife Ruth; aunt, Carlotta Taylor and father in law and mother in law, Oliver and Lillian Smith. Survivors include her husband Jim Smith of the home; daughter, Jamie Wiedel and husband Andy of Beggs; son, Justin Smith and wife Garett of Castle; grandchildren, Denver Berry of Checotah, Jayci Gildhouse and husband Nick of Checotah and Odessa and Remick Smith of Castle; great-granddaughter, Aurora Juniper Gildhouse of Checotah; brother in law, Pat Smith and wife Kay of Okemah; sister in law, Ernestine Standley of Okemah; uncle, Glenn Taylor and wife Billie of Perkins; her two nieces, Michelle Smith and Rachelle Sanger; nephews, Butch Standley and Todd Standley and cousins, Monica Taylor, Pam Taylor and Paula Taylor. Serving as pallbearers will be Rusty Adams, Jeff Bradley, Todd Standley, Ernie McPerryman, Denver Berry and Butch Standley. Honorary pallbearers include Carol Stacey, Rebekah Wilson, Marylin Stroud, Jane Lesyna, Janet Thurston, Judy Wade, Mikella Mims, Jennifer Chesser, Denise Goodson and Diane Morton. Services will be under the direction of Parks Brothers Funeral Home, Okemah, Oklahoma and officiated by Billy Green and Mike Lewis with the eulogy given by Garett Smith. Online condolences may be made at www.ParksBrothersFuneralHome.com.

Delores Taylor Smith

October 19, 1941 - May 27, 2022