Florence Dukes Churchill passed away December 7th after a prolonged illness. She was under the expert care of Covenant Living at Inverness Village with Grace Hospice support. She was 88.

Florence was born in Tulsa to Alice and Theodore (Ted) Dukes in 1932, their only child. She grew up in Tulsa and nearby Hominy where her father practiced law and dabbled in oil exploration. Alice, an arts school graduate, imparted a fondness for outdoor activities and horses, the arts and a German/Texan heritage. Ted, however, was of Choctaw decent and Indian culture was always present in the home.


Florence attended the University of Tulsa where she joined Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority and met Henry Churchill. They married in Hominy in 1952 and moved to Chicago where Henry attended McCormick Seminary and Florence enrolled at Northwestern University. They began a family with two sons, David and Richard, and served as pastor and wife in a suburban Presbyterian church. The Churchills followed pastoral callings in Bluffton, Indiana and Muskogee, Oklahoma before returning to Tulsa to help establish Trinity Presbyterian in 1980. Each church became Florence's community of faith and source for life long friendships.

After Henry Churchill died in 1987, Florence acquired two more sons, Mark and Steven, on her marriage to Elmer Manley. The new couple moved to Inverness Village shortly after its construction where they enjoyed retirement by traveling, visiting friends and neighbors and pursuing hobbies. After Elmer's death in 2007, Florence remained at Inverness surrounded and supported by her neighbors and church contacts. Her family would like to thank Covenant Living at Inverness for the friendship, security and support Florence enjoyed in her final years.

Florence is survived by her sons, Richard of Stillwater and David of Skaneateles, New York, Mark Manley of Tulsa, four grandchildren and a great-grandchild. First cousin Edwin Dukes resides in Glenpool with his wife JoAnn. Memorial gifts are directed to Grace Hospice. Memorial services will be arranged through Moore Funeral Home when pandemic restrictions allow.