Syble Lee Atherton

Syble Lee Bolinger Atherton was born August 7, 1932 in Murphy, Oklahoma, to Theodore and Maggie Jewel Whorton Bolinger. The 4th of 8 children. She went to be with her Lord on May 23, 2024, following 9 months of health issues. Syble was preceded in death by her husband Paul, her parents,Ted & Jewel; her siblings and their spouses: Carline and Vernon Yates, Evylene and Cecil Ince, T.D. Bolinger, Barbara Giles, Cotton Duncan, and Don Hammock; brother-in-law, Harold & Lorraine Atherton and sister-in-law Virginia & Richard Boyd. She is survived by her son and daughter-in-law, Randy and Lara Atherton of Tulsa; her granddaughters, Rebecca and husband Kody Kothmann and Rachel Atherton; as well as her three youngest sisters, a brother-in-law and a sister-in-law: Peggy Duncan, Shirley and Ronnie Wheaton, Beverly Hammock, and Mary Bolinger plus numerous nieces, nephews, great-nieces and nephews and great-great-nieces and nephews. Syble attended 2 and 3 room schoolhouses in Murphy through the 8th grade. She was the youngest of her first 4 siblings and did not like being the only one left at home during the school day, so when she was 4 years old, she started following her siblings on the 1 mile walk to school. There wasn't a kindergarten, so the teacher decided to allow her to go ahead and start the 1st grade at age 4. Syble didn't like wearing shoes (a dislike that continued her entire life) so she and some of her siblings regularly went to school barefoot. One day it started snowing unexpectedly at the end of the school day so she literally had to walk a mile home barefoot in the snow! After graduating from the 8th grade, she took a bus to high school in Locust Grove. The bus didn't have seats like a normal bus, but wood benches running along either side. One of her childhood pastimes was to lay a metal barrel on its side and balance and walk on the top of it while it was rolling. Her brother T.D. liked to shove her off, which would make her mad. Syble graduated from high school as Valedictorian at the age of 16. Nobody would hire her to work until she turned 18 so she enrolled in the Secretarial Course at the State Business College in Miami, OK. She graduated with her diploma from there at the age of 18. From there she got hired to work for GMAC in downtown Tulsa. She lived with her roommate, Ina, in a small room at the YWCA where they were only allowed to have a hot plate to cook their meals. She worked her entire career for GMAC other than the 3 years she and Paul lived in Bradford, PA. Her final position with GMAC was as a Customer Relations Supervisor. Those who know her should not be surprised that co-workers remember her as being a stickler for the rules! One of her duties was managing the repo lot behind the Ernie Miller dealership. She retired from GMAC in 1987 at the age of 55. Syble was introduced to Paul Atherton by Thelma McCurry for a blind date in 1953. They married within a year, on May 1, 1954. They honeymooned in New Orleans. It was the first of many road trips for them. They settled in Tulsa and owned many houses over the years. Syble and Paul's house had a revolving door for family members who needed a place to stay. Her younger sisters, Beverly and Shirley, particularly, lived with them on multiple occasions. They also bought their first lake house on White Horn Cove that was sold before moving to Pennsylvania. Son, Randy, arrived on July 16,1969, to fulfill their fondest dream of being parents. From then on their lives revolved around Randy (and his activities) and, eventually, Randy's family. As soon as Randy and Syble could travel after childbirth, Paul loaded them up in a car and drove them to Bradford, PA where he had taken a new job and they lived for 3 years. According to Syble, it snowed the entire time they lived there and she didn't get out of the house much. She was very happy to move back to Tulsa and rejoin GMAC. In the mid-80s they bought a lake house at Toppers in Wagoner. Their last Tulsa house was flooded twice in the 1980s from the Mingo Creek coming out of its banks, but they were able to repair it and stay there. Unfortunately, most of their family photos were damaged or destroyed, though. Syble was a hard worker and had a mind for business. In the 1960s, Syble and some GMAC co-workers opened the Gaslight Dinner Theater in South Tulsa. She often mentioned that she invested $1000 of "her" money in the project and made it back many times over. She worked as the hostess and Paul was the bar tender. It was during the time in Oklahoma that you could not buy alcoholic drinks in a restaurant but had to take your own liquor for the bar tender to mix and serve back to you. She also bought her parents' house in Pryor after they passed and used it as a rental property for decades. Over the years, Syble and Paul took many road trips with her siblings and later with Randy. They also went on a cruise for their 25th Anniversary with 2 siblings and their spouses. They took Randy to Hawaii when he was in high school. After Randy graduated high school and Syble retired, they took a long trip to Europe with Paul's sister, Virginia & husband Richard, to visit their family in Belgium and travel to surrounding countries. Later they also traveled with her siblings for an Alaskan cruise. Before having grandchildren, Syble spent retirement becoming an amazing tole painter and selling her work in booths at craft markets. She also played bridge weekly with her sister Carline's group in Wagoner. She and Paul typically spent 2 days per week at their lake house in Toppers. She also enjoyed taking her lawn chair and sitting in line to buy concert tickets for Randy where she could eavesdrop on all the conversations going on around her. Syble was a fan of TU sports and professional basketball. In the 90s she loved the Chicago Bulls and more recently was a huge OKC Thunder fan. In the 90s and early 2000s, Syble liked to go antiquing for her favorite Ruby Red and Emerald Green glass. She also enjoyed annual "Girls" trips and sleepovers with her sisters to Branson, War Eagle Craft Show or the Outlets in Stroud. Syble and Paul were as excited to be grandparents as they were to be parents. When Rebecca was born in February 1998, Randy and Lara were living in Syble and Paul's house after a job change while Syble and Paul lived at the Lake House. Syble spent several days a week in Tulsa loving on Rebecca though. For 3 years, Becca was the center of her world and she kept her as often as possible. Then Rachel arrived in 2001 and there were 2 granddaughters to dote on. She potty trained both girls on her back patio because she read that was a good way to do it. She made tents with card tables and played on the floor for hours with the girls. She would let Becca toss a deck of cards in the air and play 52 pick-up while Becca watched and laughed. Even though Syble didn't like to cook she would make the girls Jello eggs, hot dog octopuses, and endless chicken nuggets Kids' Cuisine tv dinners and boxes of Kraft Mac & Cheese. When the girls got a little older, she would take them to Dollar Tree to let them pick out toys. She also attended innumerable dance recitals and soccer games over the years. Syble lived to see both girls graduate OSU with their bachelors degrees and she was able to watch a live stream of Becca's marriage to Kody shortly before she passed. Syble was a member of Southwood Baptist Church for most the last 15 years of her life. She was a member of the Naomi Sunday School class along with her sisters, Peggy and Barbara. She enjoyed taking a few bus trips to Branson with church friends. For several years she volunteered to count the offering. She loved listening to her Pastor Darrin McKnight preach, Jimmy Lawbaugh sing, and the fellowship of her Sunday School friends. Even when she reached the point of being unable to attend services, she loved visits from Pastor, Dr. Dan - her deacon, and her Naomi class friends. She looked forward to receiving her church newsletter and enjoyed all the cards received from the Children's Ministry and friends. Syble lived alone independently and was still driving after Paul passed away in December 2015 until right after her 90th birthday in August 2023. Following a heart stoppage, fall, and rehab, she moved to an apartment in Prairie House. She had many ups and downs, but on her good days she loved to play bingo (and win) and listen to gospel music singings. She quickly made several friends among the ladies living there. She loved visitors and telephone calls. She had a number of great caregivers and therapists over her last 9 months. The family is very appreciative of the kind care she received from everyone at Prairie House, therapists from Enhabit Home Health, sitters from InCare, and hospice workers. Her favorites were Victoria from Prairie House, her medication tech, Kim her speech pathologist, and her sitters Maya and Ku'ualoha. During the bad times near the end, she would just light up when Ku'ualoha arrived to care for her. Visitation for Syble will be 4:00 - 7:00 p.m., Friday, May 31,, 2024 at Moore's Southlawn. Services will begin at 10 a.m. at Southwood Baptist Church, 4020 South 102nd East Ave., Tulsa, Oklahoma with interment following at Floral Haven Cemetery. And a reception back at the church afterwards. Donations may be made in her name to Southwood Baptist Church with Missions noted in the memo line.

Syble Lee Atherton

August 7, 1932 - May 23, 2024