Glenann Wilkerson Obituary

Glenann Wilkerson passed away peacefully on January 28, 2025, four months shy of her 100th birthday.

Her parents Glenna and Clarence Wilkerson welcomed her into this world on June 7, 1925. She was born in Sapulpa, Oklahoma and grew up in Welch, Oklahoma, a town she described as "a place you could look over or overlook in five minutes." Her brother Haines was ten years older and she wanted to do everything with him and go everywhere with him even to the extent of once holding on to a spare tire attached to the back of his car when he was taking his girlfriend on a date.

Eventually Glenann managed to separate herself from Haines and forged her own identity. As a young girl, her Sunday school teacher at the Methodist church nurtured Glenann's faith. She was then recruited to teach younger children and shared her love of Jesus with them. Glenann was proud of the medals she earned eight years in a row for perfect attendance on Sundays. At Welch High School, her extracurricular activities included being captain of the girls basketball team, playing the clarinet in the school band, singing in the glee club, being the drum major for the high school marching band and serving as a class officer. She graduated third in her class in 1943.

Despite Glenann's academic standing she could not afford a college education. Instead, she moved to Tulsa where she enrolled at Draughon Business Institute. Upon completing this course of study in 1944, in a letter of recommendation, the manager of the school said "Miss Wilkerson is an indefatigable worker, meticulous in her dress and possesses a pleasing personality...She enjoys a very high reputation among students and teachers at Draughon...Her loyalty, integrity, and honesty are above reproach and I have no hesitancy in recommending her for any position that she may seek."

In 1945 Glenann was hired as an accountant for the Siegfried Insurance Company. While working there she continued her education with courses at the University of Tulsa and Oklahoma University. Her diligence and ability led to her being promoted to Treasurer of the Siegfried Company in 1951. As they expanded their business beyond the insurance field and acquired other interests and investments, Glenann was entrusted with more duties and she was named Vice President and Secretary of the firm in 1970. She remained there until her retirement in 1990.

Glenann was not all work and no play. As a young woman, she drove down Peoria Avenue - the "restless ribbon" - in her shiny red convertible to Pennington's drive-in with her friends. She purchased her own boat - a source of great pride and joy - and enjoyed many weekend excursions on Grand Lake, where she later owned a second house.

Glenann remained a faithful member of the Methodist Church and later became familiar with the Catholic faith through the Siefried family and several other acquaintances, including Denise Mohr who was the Mother Superior of the Benedictine Sisters at Monte Cassino Monastery in Tulsa. Glenann took instructions in the Catholic faith at three different parishes, each time pondering, "I wondered what I was doing in a church where the minister's back was to you and (they) also spoke a foreign language!" She was finally baptized into the Catholic Church on December 23,1960.

When her good friend Denise separated from the community at the Monte Cassino Monastery, Glenann offered Denise a place to live "temporarily." They discovered they were so compatible as roommates that Glenann's house became a permanent home for both of them. In 2001 they moved to Surprise, Arizona where they forged new friendships at the Sun City Grand 55+ community. They returned to Tulsa in 2006.

Glenann was an active member of the Church of Saint Mary and the Pax Christi faith group. She contributed many volunteer hours and financially donated to local charitable organizations - Neighbor for Neighbor, Eastern Oklahoma Food Bank, Resonance Center For Women, Day Center For The Homeless, and many others.

Glenann was preceded in death by her parents, Glenna and Clarence Wilkerson, her brother Haines Wilkerson and his wife Agnes, and her devoted friend Denise Mohr. She is survived by her nephew Haines Wilkerson, her niece Donna Reid as well as her great nephew Travis, his wife Emily and their son Carson.

In gratitude for those who served Glenann and cared for her during her years at the Montereau Retirement Center, her family and friends request that donations be made to Montereau Team Member Appreciation Fund c/o the Accounting Department at Montereau, 6800 S Granite Avenue, Tulsa OK 74136.

A memorial Mass will take place at the Montereau Chapel on Wednesday, February 12th at 11:00.