Lynn Coury

Mary Lynn Douglas Coury passed from this life into the arms of her Lord, our Savior Jesus Christ, and the presence of the Saints on Tuesday morning, July 12, 2016. She was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma to Julia McGuire Douglas and Marion Doke Douglas, Sr. on August 11, 1938, their first child and only daughter. She attended Central High School and studied at the University of Oklahoma where she pledged Kappa Alpha Theta. She left OU after her sophomore year to move to Dallas, Texas, where she became an American Airlines stewardess. While working in Dallas, she encountered a handsome Baylor dental student, A. Sam Coury, who would become the love of her life. Upon their marriage on October 15, 1960, they moved to Oklahoma City where they quickly began a family. Carol, Julie, John and then Jimmy were born to Lynn and Sam within the next 5 years. Lynn was by her husband's side for every business endeavor throughout their 56 years together. She worked in his dental practice and helped him to create a thriving real estate business and advised on acquisitions. She was insightful, trusted and prudent. Her greatest achievement was the rearing of her children, who call her "blessed." She immersed herself in creating a home that was the magnet for friends and generations of family. Lynn invested in building a lasting legacy of unconditional love and graciousness that was infectious. She celebrated the large and loving family that she and Sam created as marriages and births added to their number. She celebrated every holiday and birthday with fanfare, fun, and tables laden with delicious food. She touched so many lives and was a living example of how one should treat others, always with respect but never afraid to offer advice at the right time and with a positive lesson. Her love for her Lord and Savior was paramount and she urged her children and others to honor Him always. Lynn had a compassionate heart and served on numerous civic boards and committees, including Meadows Center for Opportunity, The Aliya Hefner Memorial Foundation, Partners of the Americas, Theta Flaming Festival, and the Kiwi American Airlines Stewardess Organization. She was honored by her sorority as Theta of the Year and cherished her sisterhood tremendously. After the Oklahoma City bombing, she responded quickly and was a volunteer caregiver, tirelessly working to help with emotional and physical recoveries. Lynn was more than a wife and mother, she was a rudder for her family, an encourager to each and every member, a true matriarch. She had a remarkable insight to each person's gifts and talents and celebrated each one for the unique person they were created to be. She made everyone around her feel valuable, special, and loved beyond measure. She was inspirational, protective, and wise, giving friends as well as family direction in matters of life. We will all be eternally grateful to God for sharing her with us – she was a beacon of light and love, and incomparable woman of beauty and grace. She was the best of us. Many people call her an angel on earth and today, she walks among the angels as a new Creation. This incredibly virtuous woman leaves with us all the recipe for a life well lived. She has left a strong legacy for subsequent generations with evidence of her passage through our lives and time. She was the epitome of beauty, dignity and grace. To know her was to love her and be loved in return even more. We will miss her deeply and constantly – reflecting on her direction in good and hard times as we strive to walk a path that is worthy of Christ. Lynn was preceded in death by her parents, Julia and Doke Douglas. She leaves behind her husband and the love of her life, Dr. Sam Coury; her brother, Dr. M. Doke Douglas, Jr. and wife Anne; her children, Carol and husband Robert Hefner IV, Julie Solheim, John Coury, James and wife Marianne Coury; grandchildren, Robert Hefner V and wife Kellie, Iman Hefner Berglan and fiancée Dominic Dangora, Alexis Burckart and husband Blake, Gabrielle Hefner, Allie Coury, Mia Solheim. Maddie Coury, and Sam Coury - all deeply beloved and thankful for her benevolent wisdom. Lynn was blessed to enjoy the births of great grandchildren, Tristan and Beckett Berglan, Easton and Pierson Hefner and Isabelle Lynley Burckart. Funeral Services will be 10:00 a.m. Saturday, July 16, 2016 at St. Elijah Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church with burial to follow at Rose Hill Burial Park. Donations may be made to the Flowers that Do Not Wither Fund of St. Elijah or to the charity of your choice.