Honoring OBA members we have lost

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2026

January

Charles Wesley Barker Jr. of Collinsville died March 18. He was born Feb. 22, 1947, in Hobart. Mr. Barker received his J.D. from the OCU School of Law in 1982.  

Deborah S. Arnold Block of Norman died Sept. 25. She was born Feb. 19, 1962, in Champaign, Illinois. She attended Norman High School and graduated from OU with a bachelor’s degree in business in 1984. Ms. Block received her J.D. from the OU College of Law in 1987. She received both of her degrees with honors. She briefly began her career in litigation before leaving corporate practice in 1994 to manage Associated Metallurgists, where she worked with her father. 

Edward Lee Bowman of Grove died May 9. He was born May 16, 1946. Mr. Bowman received his J.D. from the American University Washington College of Law in 1975. 

Kelley Charles Callahan of Edmond died Sept. 10. He was born Aug. 22, 1952, in Oklahoma City. He attended Colgate University on a baseball scholarship. Mr. Callahan received his J.D. from the OU College of Law in 1980 and proudly practiced law until his retirement.  

David Roger Cerchie of Vero Beach, Florida, died Sept. 8. He was born Sept. 7, 1946, in Joplin, Missouri. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in marketing and received his J.D. from the TU College of Law. Mr. Cerchie began his legal career practicing in Tulsa. In 1994, he cofounded VersaFlex, a polyurea and protective coating technologies company. The business expanded and eventually joined the PPG family of companies. He then moved to Vero Beach, where he served as treasurer of Bike Walk Indian River County. 

Renee Colbert of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, died Feb. 27. She was born Feb. 3, 1955, in Shattuck. She attended Southwestern Oklahoma State University on a flute scholarship, where she was the featured majorette, and graduated from OSU with a bachelor’s degree in music education in 1977. Ms. Colbert received her J.D. from the OU College of Law in 1984. She practiced law in Oklahoma and later in western Pennsylvania, where she led Colbert Law. She shared her 40 years of experience with her fellow lawyers and paralegal students as a professor at the Western School of Business and later Duquesne University.  

Ronald V. Collier of Edmond died Oct. 13. He was born April 27, 1938, in Anadarko. He attended Geary High School, where he played football, and Southwestern Oklahoma State University. Mr. Collier taught history at Putnam City Schools while attending law school at night. He received his J.D. from the OCU School of Law in 1969. After graduation, he worked with the Oklahoma City municipal counselor’s office. He went on to join Mesis Law Office in Hennessy before returning to Edmond.  

Judge Louis Alvin Duel Jr. of Guthrie died Nov. 21. He was born May 8, 1963, in Guthrie, where he attended school and graduated in 1981. Mr. Duel earned his bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from the University of Central Oklahoma and attended law school in the evenings while serving as the Logan County undersheriff. He received his J.D. from the OCU School of Law and was hired as an assistant district attorney in Logan County. Eight years later, he was appointed as a special judge by Judge Donald Worthington. Two years after that appointment, he was elected as Logan County associate district judge, a position he faithfully served in for the last 16.5 years. 

Norma Eagleton of Tulsa died Aug. 13. She was born March 19, 1934. She graduated with degrees from Stephens College and OU, and she received her J.D. from the OCU School of Law in 1988. Ms. Eagleton became the first female commissioner (finance commissioner) on the Tulsa City Commission in 1976 and, in 1979, was the first woman to serve on the Oklahoma Corporation Commission. She has been inducted into the Oklahoma Women’s Hall of Fame, the Claremore Hall of Fame and the Claremore Public Schools Hall of Fame. 

Tom Allen Frailey of Chickasha died Sept. 14. He was born July 1, 1951, in Stillwater and graduated from Perry High School in 1969. He received his bachelor’s degree in business from then-Central State University in 1973 and his J.D. from the OU College of Law in 1976. Mr. Frailey began an internship at Vaughn, Stack & Huckaby in 1975 before eventually settling in Chickasha and becoming a partner, retiring in July 2017. He was the Chickasha city attorney for more than 40 years and served as the city attorney for Marlow, Comanche, Rush Springs and Alex. He was also a bar examiner, creating questions for the bar exam and grading them.  

Robert Richard Hamilton of Dallas died Oct. 30. He was born April 2, 1937, in Fort Worth. He received his J.D. from the OU College of Law in 1961. Mr. Hamilton joined the U.S. Army, which became a 42-year-long career. He served as an attorney for the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command in St. Louis and then for the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command in Huntsville, Alabama, where he managed defense contracts.  

Helen M. Kannady of Jenks died July 29. She was born July 4, 1931, in Broken Arrow and graduated from Will Rogers High School. Fostering children inspired her to attend college to become a social worker, which then led her to law school to work in the juvenile court. The opening for a special judgeship at the juvenile bureau came before Ms. Kannady had finished law school. With special permission from the Oklahoma Supreme Court, she began the assignment with the assurance that she would complete law school and the bar exam. She received her J.D. from the TU College of Law. When the time was right, she stepped aside from that position to practice family law.   

Mark Dewayne Nation of Oklahoma City died Nov. 30. He was born Jan. 25, 1960, in Oklahoma City. Mr. Nation graduated from OU with bachelor’s and master’s degrees. He received his J.D. from the OCU School of Law in 1991. His spinal cord injury led him to help others with social security disability and catastrophic personal injuries.  

Randy Clayton Parsons of Shawnee died July 20. He was born June 14, 1947, in Shawnee. He graduated from Shawnee High School in 1965. Mr. Parsons attended East Central University after high school but was soon drafted into the military. He served in the U.S. Air Force as an aircraft electrician during the Vietnam War from 1996 to 1970, when he was honorably discharged. He graduated from East Central University, where he was a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity, with a bachelor’s degree in English and history. Mr. Parsons received his J.D. from the OCU School of Law in 1975. He started his legal career by joining his father’s law firm, which became Parsons & Parsons. In 1995, he opened his own practice, where he practiced until his retirement in 2013. He received his 50-year milestone anniversary pin as an OBA member in 2025. Mr. Parsons was also a member of the American Trial Lawyers Association. Even after retirement, he enjoyed talking to old clients and continuing to give legal advice. 

William W. Pritchard of Tulsa died March 17. He was born March 20, 1951, in Tulsa. He attended College High, where he played varsity basketball with his brother and best friends. Mr. Pritchard graduated with honors from the University of Kansas, where he pledged Sigma Chi, with a bachelor’s degree in history. He received his J.D. from the TU College of Law in 1975. He served as general counsel at Parker Drilling Co. for 23 years.  

Barbara Rauch of Oklahoma City died May 9, 2024. She was born April 26, 1944. Ms. Rauch finished high school on her own and graduated from OU. She received her J.D. from the OCU School of Law, during which time she interned at the Oklahoma attorney general’s office. Ms. Rauch became the chief environmental attorney for the state of Oklahoma after graduation. She relocated to the Cayman Islands for 12 years before returning to Oklahoma to work at the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality, where she was employed until she was 70.  

Marjorie Maria Redbird of Choctaw died Oct. 20. She was born March 11, 1954. Ms. Redbird received her J.D. from the OU College of Law.  

Larry Keith Shaw of Bethany died Sept. 14. He was born March 2, 1944, in Altus. Mr. Shaw graduated from Altus High School and OSU, where he earned a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in civil engineering and was honored with the Engineering Saint Patrick Salute Award. He served on the OSU Board of Engineers for several years and enjoyed meeting with engineering students. Mr. Shaw received his J.D. from the OCU School of Law in 1975. He spent most of his career in the oil and gas business, especially working with offshore facilities. He lived overseas for several years in Singapore and England and conducted most of his work in the Middle East, China, Singapore, Europe and the North Sea. While there, he was always involved in coaching and working with the children of fellow expats at the American schools. After returning to the States, he retired from Fluor Corp. 

Tythe Hill Stites of Tulsa died Sept. 12. He was born March 22, 1956. He received his J.D. from the TU College of Law in 1984.  

Margaret P. Taylor of Durant died July 20. She was born Oct. 21, 1941, in Blanchard. Ms. Taylor graduated with a bachelor’s degree in music education from Southeastern Oklahoma State University and became a music teacher. She received her J.D. from the OU College of Law in 1977. She practiced both criminal and civil law, and she was the second female lawyer in Durant. She gave much of her time to pro bono work, helping women in difficult situations and others in need. Ms. Taylor was involved in the Bryan County Bar Association, the Oklahoma Shakespearean Festival, the Bryan County Federation of Democratic Women, Dayspring Church, the Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle, the Chautauqua Women’s Club and the Chautauqua Bird, Tree & Garden Club.  

Charles W. Wright of Noble died Nov. 29. He was born Nov. 12, 1943, in New York City. He graduated from Grant High School in 1961 and earned his Ph.D. in sociology and anthropology in 1976 from the University of Notre Dame. He received his J.D. from the OCU School of Law in 1984. Mr. Wright taught sociology and criminology at OU and OCU. He finished his career practicing law in Norman, having worked at the Oklahoma Corporation Commission and the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission. He was the co-author of numerous publications on sociological theory, mainly with Talcott Parsons.