Mary Conaleeta "Connie" Hart Kearbey, a former Miss Congeniality and musical theater leading lady, died on Aug. 22, 2026, in Collinsville, Okla. She was 76 years old.

Born in Tulsa on Aug. 12, 1950, Connie, as she was affectionately known to family and friends, was the youngest child and third daughter born to Albert Lee Hart and Beulah Mary Limke Hart.

Connie grew up in Tulsa, where she became a cheerleader at both Nimitz Junior High School and Memorial High School, where she graduated in 1968. Her love of performing took her to many stages, and one of her early standout roles was as Eliza Doolittle in the classic musical My Fair Lady during her senior year of high school.

After high school, Connie enrolled at Oklahoma State University, where she studied music and joined the Alpha Delta Chi sorority, as well as the Sigma Alpha Iota women's international music fraternity. During her time at OSU, the musical theater star was voted "Miss Congeniality" at both the Miss OSU and Miss Tulsa pageants.

Her love of the stage didn't stop there. Connie was invited to join a Bob Hope USO tour in Central America during her time at OSU, which delayed her 1972 graduation to the following academic year.

Connie continued to sing and inspire others musically, performing with local musician Bobby Cervantes at his family's restaurant, Casa Monterrey. She also taught music at an elementary school in Idabel and became a cantor at the Church of St. Mary in Tulsa and later at St. Thérèse in Collinsville.

In August 1980, she married her first husband, James Christopher "Chris" Underwood, at Holy Family Cathedral in downtown Tulsa. Shortly thereafter, the pair moved to Abu Dhabi, U.A.E., to pursue career opportunities.

Connie also spent time as an entrepreneur, launching a salsa company and selling Pampered Chef kitchenware. She later worked at Ascension St. John Medical Center in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

On Dec. 12, 2012 at 12:12 p.m., Connie married her beloved Jack Kearbey, a pilot and aircraft builder who served in the U.S. Air Force, at the Church of St. Mary in Tulsa. The devoted couple traveled extensively to destinations including New Zealand, Germany and Costa Rica. Connie loved flying alongside her loving husband.

The talented singer and musician constantly wowed her family with not only her beautiful voice but also her enduring kindness and love for people and animals. A devoted Catholic and parishioner at St. Mary and later St. Thérèse, Connie was known for giving refuge, and lots of love, to a menagerie of lively pets and humans alike.

"I love you muchy," she would often say, echoing her own mother's adoring words.

Connie is preceded in death by her parents, Beulah and Albert; her brothers Wyman Hart and Marshall Hart; her sisters Deloris Hart Messick and husband Paul, Alberta Elizabeth Hart Groden and husband Dale; and her nephew, Dean Messick.

She is survived by her husband, Jack; stepchildren Jack Kearbey Jr., Linda Guy and husband Don, and Kim Ellison and husband David; nieces Paula Viseur and husband Mike, and Laura Clark; step-nieces and nephews Michelle Fleer and husband Glenn, David Hullum, Emily Hullum; great nephews and nieces Grant Golliver and wife Jenny, Matt Golliver, Elizabeth Messick and husband Drew Parkinson, John Paul Messick and wife Sarah, Caroline Clark and William Clark; great-great nephews and nieces Cash and Charlize Golliver, Preston and Victoria Golliver, and Ava, Hayes and Mila Messick; as well as sisters-in-law Georgia Hart and Donna Hart.

Connie is also survived by loving friends, including Brandy, Noah and Brecklin, Chris, Ruth, the Cervantes family, as well as her loyal pup Izzy, sister to the late Puddin'.

A visitation will be held on Sunday, August 30 at 4 p.m. followed by a 6 p.m. rosary service at Fitzgerald Southwood Colonial Chapel. The funeral will be held on Monday, August 31 at 11 a.m. at the Church of St. Mary followed by a burial at Memorial Park Cemetery in Tulsa.