E. Timothy Colwell, 68, better known as Tim, made his journey to the Master's home on January 14, 2021. Tim always knew he wasn't home yet while he was here on earth, but he fought a valiant battle for three weeks against Covid-19. (You should know that Tim always thought the cause of death should be included in an obituary.)
Tim was born December 17, 1952, to Mary and Gene Colwell in Fort Dodge, Iowa. The "E" in Tim's name is for Eugene, for his father, who was killed in a car accident April 1952 before Tim was born.
Tim was raised by his single mother, the postmaster in Livermore, Iowa, a town of approximately 700 people at the time. Tim's tales of growing up in Livermore showed what a proud Iowan he was (though he would say he was a "Livermoron"). Tim, known as Tee to his classmates of Twin Rivers High School in Bode, Iowa, was President of his senior class of 46 students. He was to chair the 50th Reunion this coming summer.
Tim married Deborah (Debbie) Gouge in 1984 and they had a son, Matthew Timothy Grant Colwell, in 1985. It was a marriage that many admired. Some even coveted their relationship-- but most people knew it was because Jesus was the centerpiece. Debbie passed away in July 2000, just a week before Matt turned 15, leaving Tim to raise his teen-age son on his own. He was an amazing father, exemplifying the love of the heavenly Father throughout the years.
What adventures Tim and Matt enjoyed together, including Major League Baseball junkets to see every stadium...they made it to 17. Tim driving his red Mustang convertible with Matt and his tennis mates to tournaments all over the state. All the while, he was ministering and encouraging not only Matt (or Pal as he so loved to call him) but all of Matt's friends. And eventually, dating advice shared between father and son.
In May 2010, Tim married Patty Milam Elmore. Tim and Patty met in 1985 and after a business luncheon, he thought there might be a friendship and commonality between Patty and his wife, Debbie. Indeed, the first meeting resulted in a deep friendship. Sometimes during Tim and Patty's 10 1/2-year marriage, Tim would remark, "I've married the same woman twice." He would often jest when speaking of his first date with Patty in 2009, "she plays cribbage and smokes cigars, laughs, passed the greeting-card test and loves the Lord...she is a keeper and the one God sent." If you know Tim and Patty, you know their love was palpable and deep -- that of soulmates. Patty has two daughters, Lauren Scales and Jordan Kingsley and Tim never called them "step," they became "his" daughters.
Of course, the two grandchildren, Oaklyn (4) and Jensen (2) were the most spectacular children in the world. "PopPop" doted on them and was "Pippa's" partner in caring for Jensen for the past two years while mom, Jordan, worked.
Back to Iowa in 1966, Tim was the youngest page ever in the Iowa House of Representatives during the 8th grade. He lived with a family in Des Moines during the week and traveled back to Livermore for weekends to take tests and keep up with school. He always claimed that is why algebra was not in his wheelhouse.
He graduated from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, with a B.S. from the School of Journalism in 1975 and was a proud Bulldog alum. He always joked that as a Journalism major you didn't have to take any math.
His first work assignment was with the Des Moines Chamber of Commerce. In 1978 he was lured away by Continental Heritage Press to publish coffee-table books, each glamorously profiling a city. He relocated from his beloved Iowa to Tulsa. He treasured traveling across the country, meeting cities' top leaders and living in plush and historic hotels for 3-4 months at a time, including Cleveland, San Diego, Denver, Miami, Philadelphia, Las Vegas and Los Angeles. It was while he was with CHP that he hired Craig Parks and found his best friend.
In 1982, Tim became the first and only public relations director for the City of Faith at ORU. Next stop, PR director at Parker Drilling Company, with offices in downtown Tulsa. After Parker Drilling relocated to Houston, Tim and Debbie started Colwell and Colwell, PR and Marketing. Debbie, a graphic designer, and Tim, the consummate writer and salesman. They also started The Queen of Cards, which achieved national distribution--a line of humorous greeting cards that riffed on odd vintage photos-- that Tim continued to create and sell after Debbie's death.
In 2007, Tim joined Williams, a Tulsa-based energy company, in public relations. In his role there, he traveled in support of various projects and managed and mentored a large staff of professionals who worked in disparate locations around the country. He was with Williams until his retirement in 2018. His roles at Williams included a great deal of community relations work, so we like to say, he knew "everyone" in Tulsa.
Tim Colwell was an Accredited Public Relations professional. He served as the President of PRSA Tulsa and arranged a local club meeting with Edward Bernays, "the legendary Father of Public Relations." It was quite a feat which also contributed to his achieving the PRSA Silver Link that year.
For several years Tim was an adjunct professor at the University of Tulsa teaching public relations. He was also a volunteer with Reading Partners at Sequoyah Elementary.
Tim was a member of IABC, PRSA and Rotary Club of Tulsa winning many awards from each of these, including Communicator of the Year from IABC in 1994, multiple ADDY awards, LOUIE Award winning greeting cards and the Paragon Award in 2012 from Leadership Tulsa.
He was on the board for Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits 2014-2018, was named Board Member of the Year in 2015-16 and received the Moran Award in 2015. He was currently on the board of Gathering Hearts for Honduras and a major contributor of his communication skills for that nonprofit.
A proud Rotarian for more than 40 years, he served as the Downtown Tulsa Rotary Club president in 2007. He was a Paul Harris Fellow and supporter of the Tulsa Rotary Club Foundation. He was awarded the "James G. Saied Service Above Self...and then some" in 2012 in part for his work on the Rotary Centennial Project and art installation on the Williams Center Green in downtown Tulsa. Tim co-authored the 100 Years of Rotary book, spending countless hours doing research. He also co-chaired the Centennial Celebration. There is much to be said about his Rotary years but suffice to say he met Rotary's "Four Way Test" in all ways.
But none of these awards and accolades meant as much to him as did his relationship with Jesus Christ, his Lord and Savior since 1979. Tim's deep relationship with the Lord is what he would want everyone to know and remember him by (Note: it would thrill him to point out this dangling participle).
Tim's sense of humor was one of his best traits. His laugh uproarious. Twisted humor in his greeting card line, self-deprecating jokes from any podium. He was a mentor, teacher, encourager, friend-extraordinaire and warrior for Christ. He loved to scour flea markets for new photos for his greeting cards and antique advertising. Perhaps the most poignant is the framed sign on his home office wall that was visible on Zoom meetings; it says, "OBSERVATION QUARANTINE KEEP OUT." He was also "Mr. Chamber of Commerce" for Tulsa tours when newbies came to town. His favorite stop was the 50th floor of One Williams Center giving guests a stunning bird's-eye view of the city he loved so much.
Tim loved hot tubs under the stars, patio conversations with a good cigar, the mountains of Colorado, convertibles and accelerating through the curves. He loved Crisis Communications meetings offsite on Friday afternoons, open-eyed prayers, and using and explaining "confused and embarrassed." He adored Patty and his family, but most of all he loved Jesus.
He was an extraordinary writer and communicator and has written many incredible obituaries. His wife Patty wishes he had written his own, but no one expected this outcome. He would have been humbled and elated to read the encouraging prayers and remarks on his CaringBridge site, where over 900 people registered and more than 6,500 site-visits. He would say, know Jesus because you may not have another day.
Tim Colwell is preceded in death by his mother Mary Butler Colwell and his father Eugene Leon Colwell; his only sibling, Tom Colwell and his first wife Deborah Gouge Colwell. He is survived by his "bride" Patty Colwell, son Matt (Lauren) Colwell of Bixby, OK, stepdaughters Lauren (Dominique) Scales of McKinney, TX, and Jordan (Justin) Kingsley, Skiatook, OK; grandson Oaklyn Scales and granddaughter Jensen Kingsley. He is also survived by his "favorite mother-in-law Betty Be Nice" Betty Carey of Arizona and Colorado. He also has four nieces and two nephews, plus great nieces and nephews he loved to encourage.
Services will be held at First United Methodist Church in Tulsa, Okla., on January 21, 2021, at 2 p.m. It will live stream and a video link will be provided as well. Face masks will be required, and measures are in place for social distancing in the sanctuary. There will not be a reception.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you consider a donation to Gathering Hearts for Honduras. A link for donations is at gatheringhearts.org/donate or the mailing address is 2220 W. Oakridge St., Broken Arrow, OK 74012. Moore's Southlawn 918-663-2233 share memories at www.moorefuneral.com