Anna Louise Maslanka

Anna Louise Wickstrom Maslanka passed away on November 2, 2022. She was born on November 24, 1935, in Tulsa, Oklahoma to Frank Oscar Wickstrom and Mildred Turner Wickstrom. She grew up in a bungalow on 21st street and assumed for her first few years that Woodward Park was her front yard. When she was a little girl, she listened to baseball games on the radio with her father, beginning her lifelong love of all sports. Although she was an only child, she grew up with a large extended family of aunts, uncles, and cousins with whom she nurtured relationships throughout her life, and she built an extensive family of close friends. Ann graduated from Central High School in 1953 and attended OAMC (now OSU) where she joined the Zeta Tau Alpha sorority as well as multiple other social clubs. Graduating in 1957 with a degree in education, Ann returned to Tulsa and began teaching at Alcott elementary school. In Tulsa, Ann met Bob Maslanka, a petroleum engineer who had also recently graduated from OAMC, and they married in 1959. Ann left the classroom to raise her children, Curt, who was born in 1960, and Jane, who joined the family in 1967. In the years that she was raising her children, Ann remained an active Zeta and volunteered eagerly with Aldersgate United Methodist Church, The Francis Willard Home, The Recreational Center for the Physically Limited (now The Center), Tulsa Speech and Hearing Association, UMC Women's Circle, and the OSU Posse Club. In these years, she evolved into OSU football's most ardent and loyal fan. In 1975, Ann inherited a summer cabin in the small community of Gold Hill, Colorado, and immediately involved herself in what was then a thriving community of "summer people." Returning to the cabin for 46 summers, Ann built community, nurtured lifelong friendships, and hosted themed parties so that summer friends could celebrate winter holidays together in July. Ann was always enthusiastically involved with her children's school, sports, and arts activities, welcoming Curt's high school rock band to practice in the upstairs game room and driving Jane to 6:00 am dance lessons. Once Jane was in middle school, Ann returned to classroom teaching, where she thrived as a dedicated and passionate teacher for the next 30 years. She served "her kids" at Grimes Elementary, Roosevelt Elementary, and Choteau Elementary. Also during those years, Ann's lifelong enjoyment of music (combined with her love of a party atmosphere) became a passionate love of Jazz. Her support of live Jazz in Tulsa, where she was an early member of the Tulsa Jazz Hall of Fame came to rival her support of OSU football, and in the years since she quit driving, everyone understood that supporting Ann meant getting her to her Jazz events. Ann is survived by her son Curt Maslanka of Chicago, her daughter Jane Maslanka of Tulsa, and her son-in-law John Hazell of Tulsa. Also grieving are a special niece and nephew, Jean Maslanka Kelley of Tulsa and Kazmier Maslanka of San Diego, along with their spouses and many dear, lifelong friends. Visitation will be from 5PM - 7PM, Tuesday, November 8, 2022 at Moore's Southlawn Chapel, 9350 East 51st Street, Tulsa, Oklahoma. The Funeral Service will be 3PM, Wednesday, November 9, 2022 at Christ United Methodist Church, 3515 South Harvard Ave, Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Anna Louise Maslanka

November 24, 1935 - November 2, 2022