Gene Oliver Staten

Gene O. Staten was born to Erma Berniece (Wilson) Staten [deceased] & Shady Heath Staten [deceased] at home in Shawnee, Oklahoma on August 21,1934 and passed away at the age of 87 on March 16, 2022, in Oklahoma City. He had three brothers- George & wife Hettie, James [deceased] & wife Alice, and Kenneth & wife Nancy. He married Fran Robertson in 1957 and they had two children Kimberly Gene Cook & husband Steve and Kenneth Allen Staten & wife Jean. His son Damon from his second marriage to Mary died as an infant. He married Deborah Anne Morris on March 21, 1985. From their 37 years of marriage were born two children; Rebekah Anne Staten and Caleb Andrew Staten. He had three grandsons-Michael Neal Cook, Shady Garland Cook, Christopher Jordan Staten, and one granddaughter Ruby Makenzee Staten.

Gene lived a life full of adventures. He spent his early years with his brothers taunting the buffalo in the local park, riding the oil pumps in his neighborhood, swimming in the flooded Washita River and anything to be ornery. They would just take off on their bicycles and ride on the dirt roads from OKC to Shawnee to visit family there. His idea of going to high school was taking the muffler off his motorcycle and riding the halls making everyone think the boilers blew up. One day when he was a Junior in high school, he and a friend decided to skip class to get a haircut, but instead ended up hitching all the way to a ranch outside of Alamogordo, New Mexico to become real cowboys. He became a sheetmetal worker when he returned to OKC. He served in the U.S. Navy on a wooden hull mine sweep before returning to his trade in OKC for a few years. He then attended Baptist Bible College in Missouri for four years. When not studying he would spend nights out frogging in the ponds and take a break from his dry wall work to eat his lunch of a half-gallon ice cream by the river. He once again came home to OKC and his trade where he was stopped by the police for speeding on his bicycle going to work. Whether riding his bike or motorcycles or driving his cars or streetrods-nobody could slow him down.  He loved to roller skate, ice skate, snow ski, fly planes, sky dive, SCUBA dive, spear fish, square dance (at one time was a caller), ballroom dance, do crossword and jigsaw puzzles, sing bluegrass music, build old cars, ride motorcycles, and spend time in his 3000 sq ft garage. At age 50 he asked Jesus Christ to become his Lord and Savior. He would tell everyone he saw how ready he was to go to heaven. He loved his many friends, family, and his church family at Southwest Baptist Church. He lived a good full life and will be missed by all who knew him.