Frank Dudley Sawyer

Frank Dudley "Buzz" Sawyer, aged 87, passed away March 1, 2014, in Tulsa, Okla. He was born on Jan. 28, 1927, in Stillwater, Okla., to Damon Franklin Sawyer and Velma Leona Mosher Sawyer. Frank spent his earliest years in Stillwater and then later adolescence in and around Donna, Texas, until enlisting in the Navy in 1944 to serve in World War II and later in the Korean Conflict. Frank married Margaret Elizabeth Puckett on Oct. 11, 1949, in Rogers, Ark. During this time of his life, he worked as a police officer for the City of Fayetteville, Ark. He and Margaret moved to Tulsa in 1955 where he joined the Tulsa Police Department. They divorced in 1970. He then met and married Dora Nell Dahn Holifield on Sept. 25, 1971, in Tulsa. They shared 42 years together and enjoyed traveling to many Navy reunions that he organized. Frank retired from the Army Reserves as a first sergeant in 1970 and from the Tulsa Police Department in 1976. He continued to work after retirement until 2008, first as a "hot-shot" delivery driver for Cooper Manufacturing and then later as a security guard. When not on the road, Frank enjoyed reading hundreds of paperback Westerns and was a devoted crossword puzzler. Frank was also a 32nd-degree Mason of the Scottish Rite and member of the Akdar Shrine. He was extremely proud of both of these affiliations. Frank is survived by his beloved wife, Dora; daughter, Jo Beth Reynolds and husband, Kenneth, of Turley, Okla.; son, Frank Warren Sawyer and wife, Tomye, of Tulsa, Okla.; daughter, Ann Lea Bailey and husband, Jerry, of Chouteau, Okla.; stepdaughter, Marion Lattin of Tulsa, Okla.; stepson, Joseph Holifield of Orlando, Fla.; plus seven grandchildren; two step-grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his infant daughter, Jan Lee Sawyer in 1967. Services will be held Thursday, March 6, at 10 a.m. at the Floral Haven Funeral Home Chapel. Visitation will be on Wednesday, March 5, from noon to 7 p.m. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made at ShrinersHospitalsforChildren.org. Online condolences may be made at floralhaven.com.