The first thing people would say, after meeting Millie, was "She's so sweet." And once they started to get to know her, they would say, "She's tough." She was always kind, but stubborn. She always stood up for what she believed to be the truth. She would sometimes laugh inappropriately when irritated, with an oft-misunderstood, chastening smile that meant she was about to set you straight. Millie was sweet, but feisty. "Never underestimate the power of a little old Loftin woman."

Mildred "Millie" Lucille Franklin, née Loftin, 78, of Owasso, Oklahoma, passed away at her home on April 3, 2026. She was a loving mother to more than just her sons, a cherished sister, and a beloved friend to so many.

Millie was the youngest daughter of six children given to "Rev. and Mrs. O.E. Loftin" (Callie Luvenia Allen and Oscar Elijah Loftin). She was born in Lake Charles, Louisiana on Friday, December 19, 1947. She grew up as the baby of the Loftin family, playing with dolls and her older sister, Mary.

Millie and Steve met through her father and his brother, who were both ministers in the Bible Missionary Church. They courted mostly through letters and married in 1966. Stephen was born in 1968 in Natchitoches, Louisiana. They moved to Galesburg, Illinois where Brian was born in 1973. The family relocated to Oklahoma for a brief stint in Duncan in the early 1980s and then permanently to Owasso in 2003.

Millie lived longer in Illinois than Louisiana and eventually her accent disappeared, only to unexpectedly resurface when one of her family would phone from Lake Charles. She loved to cook, and her cuisine remained rooted in the South except for a little influence from Julia Child, which produced lots of adventurous meals. She regularly read to the boys from the Bible and Emily Post's Etiquette, attempting to instill proper manners, morality and piety.

She worked at DoubleShot Coffee for 20 years. It was a business she helped start, and a place where she was able to touch many lives each day with her sweet spirit and natural charisma. She worked in the family business, Franklin Floor Covering, for many years, helping Steve manage everything but the installation. And prior to that she worked at RFMS and a few other jobs, honing bookkeeping and office management skills that would become such an asset for the two-family businesses.

Millie always took her faith very seriously, unwaveringly but often rebelliously, walking the Christian road, for 78 years. She grew up in the Bible Missionary tradition, raised her family in the Church of the Nazarene, then became a member of First Presbyterian Church after Steve's passing.

Millie is survived by her sister, Mary (Vernice); two sons, Stephen (Melissa) and Brian; four grandchildren, Kayla (Zack), Rollins, Caitrin, and Isabella; and five great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, Steve; and four siblings: Florence, Bernard, Raymond, and Ruth.

Her life was two decades shorter than she planned, but we are thankful for each day she had, spreading her unique love and kindness. Millie will be missed by so many.

Funeral Services will Thursday, April 9, 2026, at 4:00 p.m., at Fitzgerald Ivy Chapel, 1402 S. Boulder Ave., Tulsa, Oklahoma. Interment will be in Sabine Parish, Louisiana, at Spring Ridge Cemetery.

Fitzgerald Ivy Chapel, 918-585-1151