JOHN W. MARKS

April 27, 1925 - November 2, 2021

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

John's Obituary

John William Marks, first of five children of Mary Alice and Luther Whitfield Marks, was born in Shawnee, OK. He died at age 96 of congestive heart failure on 11/2/2021. After graduating from Edmond High School, he joined the U. S. Navy and served on the Pacific front during WWII. When the war ended, John attended college at Central State College (now UCO), and was a member of the wrestling team, as he had been in high school and in the Navy. He transferred to Oklahoma Baptist University to focus on pre-med courses, and was then accepted into the OU College of Medicine. He married Leta Rice in 1951. After completing his medical training, John and Leta and their family moved to Beaver, OK, and he began his career as a family medicine physician. In 1971, when their 2 oldest children went to college, John and Leta moved the family to Blackwell, OK, and John quickly became a popular physician in the community. Some of his patients from the panhandle chose to drive several hours to see him for their yearly checkups. He loved his patients, and they loved him. When John retired from private practice, he served as interim Medical Director at the George Nigh Rehabilitation Inst. for 2 years. He then fully retired in order to care for Leta, who was suffering from cancer. After her death, he volunteered until he turned 90 as a pharmacy tech at a charity clinic sponsored by a Baptist group. John married Laura Lee Thomas in 2003 and was a devoted husband to her until her death 10 years later.

John’s children, Steven, Jana, Julie and David were blessed with a dad who lived according to his Christian faith. John led by example, working long hours, reading the Bible daily, teaching Sunday School classes for many years, and dedicating himself to a life of service.

John was a loving son and brother to his parents and siblings, as well as to Leta’s parents and siblings. He adored his nephews and nieces. He remained very close to them until death. His grandchildren and great-grandchildren were his heart’s delight.

John met Pat White 8 years ago and was absolutely smitten. They married in 2019, and it was one of the happiest moments of John’s life. She was a wonderful wife and companion to him, in sickness and in health. They were a well-known and admired couple at their senior living apartments and were voted Valentine’s Day king and queen in 2020.

John is survived by his wife Pat, son Steve Marks and wife Margaret; daughter Jana Lamb and husband Rod; daughter Julie Marks Blackstone; son David Marks and wife Jane; grandchildren Rachael Fawcett, Evan Blackstone, Stuart Marks, Curtis Marks, Douglas Marks, Ryan Marks, Amber Smith and Matthew Lamb; and great-grandchildren Caleb, Waylon, Tanner Ann, Teagan, Tanner, Owen and Lucy. He was preceded in death by his parents; his sister Martha Sanders; and brothers Whit, Frank and Freddie Marks.

John’s memorial service will be held at 2:00 PM on Friday, 11/12/2021 at Quail Springs Baptist Church. The service will be available for viewing on the Quail Springs Baptist Church Facebook page. For those who wish to attend, pandemic precautions will be observed and the family requests that face masks be worn at all times inside the church.

The family wishes to thank Dr. Frank Davis, Dr. Jonathan Valuck, and Dr. Mazen Abu-Fadel for their care over the past few years. Thanks also to Integris Hospice and the staff at Lionwood Senior Living, especially to Mia and Sharon.

For anyone who wishes to honor John’s memory with a donation, he usually made his own memorial donations to Oklahoma Baptist Homes for Children: https://www.obhc.org. He would also be grateful for acts of kindness in his memory.