Leatrice Temple

Leatrice V. Temple, 86-year-old Nowata resident, passed away Saturday, July 7, 2007 at the Jane Phillips Nowata Health Center. Funeral services for Mrs. Temple will be held at 10:30a.m., Wednesday, July 11, 2007 at the First United Methodist Church in Nowata with Rev. James Perkins and Rev. Allen Schneider officiating. Interment will follow in the Nowata Memorial Park Cemetery under the direction of the Benjamin Funeral Home of Nowata. The family will receive visitors at the funeral home from 6-7p.m. Tuesday evening. Those who desire to leave memorial contributions are asked to remember the 10-33 Emergency Team, 321 E. Cherokee, Nowata, OK 74048. Leatrice V. Temple was born April 6, 1921 in Stratford, Oklahoma to Francis Herbert Smith and Nora Lee Gosnell-Smith. For the most part, Mrs. Temple attended schools in Coates, Kansas. The family moved to Nowata where she attended her senior year and graduated from Nowata High School. Mrs. Temple then went to Los Angeles where she worked for Sears and also as a private cook. She later transferred to the Sears location in Tulsa. During the escalation of World War II, Mrs. Temple began work at the Douglas Air Field as a "Rosie Riveter". Upon the end of World War II, Mr. Hubert Temple returned from his service with a wedding ring in hand. The two were soon after united in marriage on September 8, 1945 in Coffeyville, Kansas. They would later settle in Nowata where they have operated a dairy farm since. Mrs. Temple was known for her cooking abilities. She baked numerous pies that have found their way to several homes throughout Nowata County. She was also dedicated to her church and was a member of the United Methodist Women's Association. Mrs. Temple is survived by her husband Hubert of the home; by a son, William Francis Temple and his wife Phyllis of Nowata; by a daughter, Rebecca Ann Eckes and her husband John of Muskogee; by three sisters, Mildred Darby of Eunice, Louisiana, Frances Gulley of Oklahoma City, and Doris Culp of Tulare, California; by two sisters-in-law, Theola Smith of Bartlesville and Virginia Temple of Nowata; by one brother-in-law, Harrison Temple of Nowata; by three grandchildren, Mark Temple and his wife Shelli of Owasso, Heidi Whitford of Rogers, Arkansas, and William Whitford of Rogers, Arkansas; and by numerous nieces, nephews, and many friends. Mrs. Temple was preceded in death by her parents and by one brother, Herbert L. Smith.

Service Details

Wednesday, July 11th, 2007 10:30am, First United Methodist Church Nowata

Interment Details

Nowata Memorial Park Cemetery