Elizabeth Ann Willis Oliver

Elizabeth Ann Oliver passed away at a local hospital on Wednesday, February 1, 2023. She was 74 years old. A Celebration of Life ceremony will be held on Tuesday, February 21, 2023 at 10:30 am at Sharon Baptist Church.  

Elizabeth or “Libby” as she was known to her family and friends was born on July 1, 1948, in Tecumseh, OK to Loyd and Flossie Willis. She was the 7th of 8 children. Libby lived in Tecumseh and graduated from Tecumseh High School in 1966. Soon after graduating, Libby married Herman Oliver and moved to Seminole, OK. While they lived in Seminole, Libby had three daughters. Libby later returned to live in Tecumseh with her daughters. In 1975 she started working as a seamstress at Cowden Manufacturing in Shawnee. She worked there until it closed and shortly thereafter, in 1980, she began working at Shawnee Garment, home of the Roundhouse Overalls. Libby retired from Shawnee Garment after 28 years.

After a 13-year courtship, Libby married the love of her life, Marvin Warren, Sr. on February 4, 2000. Libby gained a son from this marriage. Libby and Marvin made their home in Shawnee, OK. They loved traveling, camping, fishing, and attending church together. One thing they really cherished was getting to take Steffan and Noah to the Oklahoma City Zoo together. Besides working in a sewing factory, sewing was a passion for Libby. She loved creating clothing, home decor and anything else on her sewing machine. Through the years, she made many beautiful wedding gowns and other garments, she hemmed pants, skirts and dresses for anyone she knew as well as doing alterations for Pierre’s Cleaners in Shawnee. When her daughters were in high school, the Tecumseh High School Choirs benefited from Libby’s sewing abilities for several years when she stitched the performance dresses for the students.

One of Libby’s greatest joys was spending time with her family. When her girls were younger, she was active in their extracurricular activities: t-ball teams, Campfire, Girl Scouts, and choir. Libby particularly enjoyed the time spent with her grandsons. Besides just hanging out with them, she was a leader for Steffan’s Webalo troop with Boy Scouts and she was very active as a Band Booster when he was in the Tecumseh High School Band. Libby went as a sponsor for a middle school trip to Washington DC with Noah, and she cheered on Eric at his football games. Libby had several hobbies that she loved to do. She learned how to carve wood and she enjoyed drawing and painting. She was a lifetime member of the VFW Auxiliary and the VFW National Home. She held the office of the Guard and then a Trustee. She was active in everything from baking, serving, Christmas parties for kids and fundraising. Anything the Auxiliary did, she was there.

Libby was preceded in death by her parents, Loyd and Flossie Willis, two sisters, Mary Stockton and Nancy Moore, three brothers, Russel Willis, Raymond Willis and Bobby Willis, her loving husband, Marvin and one grandson, Eric Warren who was KIA in 2012, of whom she was very proud.

She is survived by her loving dog, Alice, ornery cat, Bandit, two sisters, Saundra Carter and family of Tecumseh and Debra Dean and family of Abilene, Kansas, her children and their spouses, Stephanie and Bryce Ackerman of Shawnee, Marvin Jr and Donna Warren of Shawnee, Starla and Dennis Thomas of Broken Arrow, Sharon and Glenn Whetstine of Grand Forks, North Dakota, two grandsons, Steffan Oliver of Minneapolis, Minnesota and Noah Thomas of Broken Arrow, along with a host of nieces, nephews, and other extended family members and friends.