Wayne Lorr Whipkey

Graveside funeral services for Wayne Lorr Whipkey will be held at 10:00 AM, Monday, July 29, 2019 at the Resthaven Memory Gardens in Oklahoma City, with Brother Thomas J. Thompson and David Lee Warden, Jr officiating.

Wayne was born November 23, 1923 in Pond Creek, Oklahoma to Manuel and Bertha Erwood Whipkey. He died at the Sulphur Veterans Center on July 22, 2019.

Wayne lost his mother during childbirth. After the loss of his mother he went to live with his grandparents David and Ida Whipkey in Avery, Oklahoma. At age thirteen, Wayne lost his only sister Marie. He lived with his grandparents until he was fifteen and moved back to Pond Creek to live with his Uncle Hess Erwood. He worked on his farm until age eighteen when he joined the Army.

Wayne served during World War II in North Africa, Sicily and Italy where he fought in some major battles. He fought in Operation Husky in Sicily 1943, then fought in Operation Shingle in the major battle of Anzio of Italy when the Allied forces defeated the German/Italian forces and gained control of Italy. This battle lasted from January 1944 to June 1944. During combat, Wayne lost a comrade and also sustained injuries from a bomb and he received shrapnel in his face. When asked if his injuries were documented he stated they were short-handed and kept on fighting. Wayne was honorably discharged from the Army in 1945.

He moved to Davis, Oklahoma in 1947 where he met Martha Jo Wilson. Wayne married Martha Jo on October 2, 1948. He worked on oil rigs in the Davis area and then joined the Ironworkers Union in 1951 and started building the OG&E plant in Sulphur. Wayne worked in the Ironworkers Union for thirty-three years, where he left his mark on many of the major buildings in downtown Oklahoma City and also the tire plant in Ardmore. He was very proud of his work and the mark his Ironworkers union left throughout the State of Oklahoma.

Wayne lost the love of his life in 1999 and spent many days by her graveside in Oklahoma City. He loved working on his cars and was once asked how long it took him to restore his 1936 Ford Pickup and replied “about fifty years”. Wayne loved riding around, viewing the countryside and eating BBQ. He always appreciated the marvelous cooks at the Senior Citizens Center in Davis, where he enjoyed the home cooking. He was also a member of the Church of Christ and a member of the Tyre Masonic Lodge No. 42 for over fifty years.

A special thanks to his friends, neighbors and fellow senior citizens, who kept a watchful eye out on his well-being.