Karen Ann Dean

Karen was born in Memphis, TN and was the eldest of four children born to an ex-serviceman from Marlow, OK and his Australian war bride. She grew up in Lawton, OK and attended St. Mary's Catholic School from elementary through high school graduation in 1965, one of the last high school graduating classes at St. Mary's. As a teenager, she worked in her dad's record shop while being actively involved in social life and school activities. Throughout her entire life, she enjoyed the St. Mary's annual carnivals, especially the outdoor carnivals of her childhood.Within a couple of years of graduation, Karen married her husband of 45 years, Jimmy Dean, who, she was proud to tell, had proposed to her at Wayne's Drive Inn because he was too excited to wait. After attending Cameron University and earning her degree at Southwestern State University, she and Jimmy permanently located in Oklahoma City. Several years later, they welcomed their daughter, Melissa "Missy". Karen became an enthusiastic working-mother and enjoyed being involved in Missy's Camp Fire group. Later, once Missy reached driving age, Karen would often send her and her friends out the door with a warning of "Don't get ignorant!"Karen and Jimmy's home was always open to friends and family, and she enjoyed visitors dropping by, whether to play "42 dominoes" or just to tell stories and catch-up. She made sure no guest ever left hungry, always laying out a spread of "fabulous" foods. Karen loved attending family reunions, and despite the distance, Karen and Jimmy were regular attendees of the annual Dean family reunions. Karen also liked party planning, bargain shopping for "fabulous" items, and redecorating, taking particular pleasure in completely overhauling a room from colors to theme.Karen was a faithful fan of Elvis Presley and attended his live concerts multiple times. She was known for her collection of Elvis memorabilia, most of which she kept in her home's designated "Elvis Room." Whenever Karen would hear an Elvis song playing, she would start to sway her hands and dance along to the music before making some sort of declaration about just how much she loved "The King."Karen and Jimmy made frequent road trips for family gatherings. Upon arrival, she would often be laughing loudly about something that had happened during the car ride, which she could barely wait to retell. On numerous occasions, she would exit the car laughing so hard that she would have to run directly to the bathroom and right past family members, shouting at them to "get out of the way before I wet myself!" This would start the entire family laughing and have them anxiously waiting her return to explain what was so funny. Her animated stories and her huge, genuine laugh often brought the entire room to tearful fits of laughter.Karen spent her 42-year career as a Neuropsych Technician, first in the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at OUHSC, then Jim Thorpe Rehabilitation Center, and finally NeuroResources, administering tests to patients with cognitive dysfunction. Karen's compassion was obvious, once commenting on her profession that it was a "sobering, touching, and humbling experience." While she truly enjoyed her work, Karen also found pleasure in retirement, which gave her more time for one of her greatest joys, being with her granddaughter, Michaela, with whom she became best buddies.Karen was preceded in death by her husband, James Dale Dean, parents, Iris Joyce and J.T. "Sleepy" Wright; brothers, Tony and Nick Wright; nephew, Keegan Wright; paternal grandparents, Maggie and James T. Wright, Sr., Marlow, OK; maternal grandparents, Eleanor and Hugh Ivison Helm, Sydney, Australia.Karen is survived by her daughter Melissa Ann Cullers and husband Michael Cullers, OKC; sister, Wendy Tatroult, Lawton, OK; brother-in-law Kenneth Dean, Odessa, TX; sister-in-law, Punkin Wright, Lawton, OK; granddaughter Michaela Ann Cullers; aunts and an uncle; nieces and nephews; cousins; and a lifetime of friends.Memorial Contributions may be made in Karen's name to:St. Mary's Catholic School, 611 SW A Ave., Lawton, OK 73501 Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th St., Oklahoma City, OK 73104