Ethel B Bledsaw

Ethel Betty Joe (Fanning) Bledsaw was carried by the angels to her Lord and Savior on Tuesday, December 14, 2010 when she passed from this life at the Cimarron Pointe Care Center in Mannford at the age of eighty-two. The healing she was promised by her heavenly savior is now complete and the reunion with her beloved Sab and other family members including her son, Carl and daughter, Patricia is now underway. Ethel was born on December 22, 1927 in Oilton, Oklahoma. She was the daughter of Benjamin D. and Mary E. (Huff) Fanning. She was raised on a farm near Oilton and attended Oilton Schools, later moving to a farm near Hallett and attending school there. Ethel was married to Oscar Sab Bledsaw on November 13, 1942 in Keystone, Oklahoma. The couple made their initial home in rural Pawnee County and continued to reside on the family farm east of Hallett near Dog Center. The couple had three children, Carl Jr., Patricia and Tommy. During the early part of their marriage, Sab and Ethel would spend part of the year in Arizona assisting with a sharecropping effort with farmers in that state; however their hearts remained in Oklahoma. Eventually, they returned to Oklahoma for good and spent their remaining years together near Hallett. Ethel was wonderful example of the Virtuous Woman described in Proverbs 31:10-31. The reflection of her love of the Lord could be seen in her faith, by serving God with all her heart, mind and soul; her relationship with her husband, doing him good all the days of his life; her mothering, teaching her children the ways of the Father in heaven; her health, caring for herself; her service, a charitable and loving spirit; in her finances, seeking her husbands approval and spending money wisely; her industry, working willingly with her hands; her homemaking, creating an inviting atmosphere of warmth and love for her family; her time, using her time wisely; and finally in her beauty, an inner beauty that only came from Christ. Ethel was a longtime and faithful member of the Friendship Community Church in Mannford especially during the time that Brother Gene Varnell led the church and most recently during Bill and Delorus Terrellís tenure. She loved her church and her church family. She also enjoyed gardening and canning and worked diligently to provide fresh food for her family and friends. Ethel could be described as a simple woman who loved country life and sharing that time with her family. After her husband, Sab passed away on June 7, 1993, Ethel continued to reside on the family property near Hallett until she moved to the Golden Age Apartments in Mannford. Due to health reasons, Ethel recently moved to the Cimarron Pointe Care Center in Mannford in September of 2010. Ethel is survived by her son and his wife, Thomas Dowel and Jan Bledsaw of Fishers, Indiana; a brother, Bruce Fanning of Jennings, Oklahoma; and a host of other relatives and friends that mourn her passing. In addition to her husband, Ethel was preceded in death by her parents; a son, Carl Jr. Bledsaw; a daughter, Patricia Mahan; four brothers, Carl Fanning, George Fanning, Edward Harruff and Bobby Harruff; and three sisters, Bernice Helfenbien, Dorothy Bailey and Evelyn Faye Bickle. Funeral services will be held at 10:00 am, Friday, December 17, 2010 at the Friendship Community Church with Bill and Delorus Terrell officiating. Burial will be at the Bethany Cemetery in Hallett, Oklahoma. Friends may share a memory with the family at the funeral home or online at www.chapman-black.com