Shirley Pugh

Sixty years ago this month Milt saw a 14-year-old girl at a sock hop. Her smile caught his eye. Six decades later, as the two spend their last days together as husband and wife, she still had that same beautiful smile. Shirley Jane Pugh was born in Sulphur, OK on December 29, 1941 and died from complications of Alzheimer's Disease on Sunday, January 24, 2016. Shirley was a daughter of Frank and Iona (Franks) Lack and raised in Norman, OK. She graduated in 1959 from Norman High School and finished her education at Central State College. She taught English in Oklahoma and Illinois public schools. On August 29, 1959 she married Floyd Milton Pugh. After six years they were blessed with the birth of Chris (Karla Gutierrez-Pugh), then Stephanie (Andy Lattig) and later Beth (Will Madland). Shirley loved giving "love pats" to her three grandchildren Seaman Bradley Davis, Coleman and Ella Madland that always ended with squeals of laughter and requests for more. An entrepreneur at heart, Shirley and a friend opened The Yarn Barn in Illinois. Later she bought The Yarn Shop in College Park, MD. At both places she said making money wasn't her only motivation. It was seeing the eyes of her clients light up when they learned to knit, crochet or finish a project. Shirley was witness to many joys and pain as customers shared their stories in the back of her classroom while knitting and purling. When she retired in 1999 she received a letter from a customer who had come in and sat and talked for a long time. She wrote "that conversation led me change my mind about committing suicide." For more than 30 years Shirley sang alto in the church choir at Liberty Grove United Methodist Church in Burtonsville, MD. In 2012 Shirley and Milt moved back to Oklahoma where she and her sister-in-law, Jo Frances Beauchamp, ran errands and did many projects together. Shirley was first diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2002. With some tears and grit she battled this disease with determination. Early on she admitted to finding sample internet neurological tests which she studied so she would get a better score on the testing. Surprisingly, she could still recite rules to grammar questions while her verbal capacity was changing from the disease. Her last six months were spent at Touchmark Memory Care in Edmond where her sweet disposition won the hearts of her caregivers. The caregivers at Touchmark and New Century Hospice became a part of our family and we are so thankful for their professionalism and tender way they treated Shirley. Thank you to Dr. Jeffrey Davenport and his staff for helping guide us during the last four years of her care. Shirley is preceded in death by her father, mother, her sister Marylin and brother Karl. She is survived by her brother Steve (Frances Lack). A graveside service will be held 10:00 A.M., at Hillside Cemetery in Purcell, OK on Wednesday, January 27, 2016. In lieu of flowers or donations, Shirley's family asks for you to think of her beautiful smile and pass that on to a loved one or stranger today. Shirley loved quesadillas but that is a story for another day.

Shirley Pugh

December 29, 1941 - January 24, 2016