Nadean Skinner

NaDean Skinner was a resident of Bartlesville for over 91 years. In addition to raising her two sons, Dr. James Skinner and John, here, she worked for Phillips 66 for 29 years before retiring in the mid-1970s. Her beloved home for over 60 years was the white, rambling, two-story with a white picket fence in the front that is still standing near the original northern limits of the city at 105 N. Choctaw. Under the close support of her oldest son, Jim, and his wife Sonya, for the past few years she has lived in long-term care facilities in Missouri and Arizona. NaDean died March 27th at age 97 and has returned to her home town where she will be laid to rest in the Memorial Park Cemetery. Her eventual return to Bartlesville was the most common thread sprinkled into conversations and recollections with her since she left to be with family. Before moving from Bartlesville, she was a member of the Memorial Christian Church. Pastor Dan Snider with church members will host her farewell memorial in the church. Time: Friday, April 4th, at 2:00 P.M. Address: 1201 North Virginia Avenue here in Bartlesville. Funeral services are under the direction of the Neekamp-Luginbuel Funeral Home. Online condolences may be left at www.honoringmemories.com. NaDean was born on February 5, 1911, to Louis and Ida Kauffman. After they died while she was a very young woman, NaDean took care of her uncle, Earnest Kauffman, in her family's home until he passed at age 89. With his limited abilities, Earnest's long-term care was often challenging but demonstrated NaDean's tough constitution yet tender compassion and motherly support to her family. Her strong willpower and spirit remained with her for the full 97 years of her life. She grew up on Butler Creek in the family's country home in the Osage Hills' valley now occupied by Lake Hudson. She often rode a horse into school in Bartlesville and, with a smile, loved to tell of getting to school in winters in the hills "wading through snow up to my thigh." Her appreciation of the strong need for solid education prompted both her sons to graduate from college with James continuing on to achieve a PHD in geography. She married Lee Skinner on December 22, 1934. He was a housing contractor in Bartlesville and finished his first house at age 18. After his two sons were born, he served in World War II. Following his discharge in the mid-1940s, Lee sawed their two story home in half and moved the two sections a piece at a time to their North Choctaw address. Here he rejoined them and the house continued as the family's home for over 60 years. At the residence's original site, located across 2nd Street from the old Bartlesville Memorial Hospital on the eastern edge of downtown, he built the pair of dwellings named the NaDean Apartments. The original set of apartments converted to doctors' offices has remained in use to this day. NaDean began working at Phillips as one of the early-day elevator operators in the original Frank Phillips Building when it was the corporate home of Phillips 66. She loved telling of giving Frank rides up to the top of the tower and his office where he addressed her by her first name. She continued with the growing company and for several years she served as the supervisor over approximately 20 elevator operators. Once elevators were totally replaced by passenger-operated ones, she oversaw Phillip's Visitor Center and Museum. Her favorite guest during one of her tours was then retired, President Dwight D. Eisenhower. As a working mother, she scheduled her work days at Phillips 66 to begin before dawn so she could be home as her two boys returned from school. Saturdays usually were days to wash the laundry. Frequently on that day of doing home chores, she slowly cooked a pot of ham and beans or barley soup. To this day, still Skinner family favorites. Her husband Lee preceded her in death in 1961. NaDean is survived by her oldest son James and his wife Sonya Glavac as well as NaDean's youngest son, John and his wife Elizabeth. Her grandkids are James's children Aaron Skinner and Siall Waterbright as well his adopted daughter, Aerion Glavac-Skinner; plus John's children Ian and Tamsen Skinner. Ian's two boys are mom's great grandchildren, Christopher and Joshua Skinner. In lieu of flowers, any memorial donations should be given to Alzheimer's Foundation of America, 322 Eighth Ave., 7th floor, New York, NY 10001.

Service Details

Friday, April 4th, 2008 2:00pm, Memorial Christian Church

Interment Details

Memorial Park Cemetery Bartlesville