David Lee Gathright

Funeral Services for David Gathright, 99, Elk City resident, will be held 10:00 A.M., Saturday, August 7, 2021 in the Elk Creek Primitive Baptist Church, officiated by Elder Norman Jones and Elder Don Martin. Burial with military honors will follow in the South Burns Cemetery in Dill City, OK under the direction of the Kiesau-Lee Funeral Home. Viewing will be held at the funeral home 10:00 A.M. till 8:00 P.M., Friday, August 6, 2021. The family will greet guests from 6:00 P.M. till 8:00 P.M. David Lee Gathright was born on May 10, 1922, to David Elmer and Rosie (Kanouse) Gathright near Foss, OK, and passed away on August 4, 2021, at Clinton, OK. He attended school in California, Amarillo, TX, and in Dill City, OK. David helped on the family farm until November of 1942, when he answered his call to duty and joined the Navy. David served the remainder of WWII on the U.S. destroyer, Lansdowne, mostly in the South Pacific. On September 2, 1945, he and his ship were escorts to the U.S. battleship, Missouri, in Tokyo Harbor for the signing of the Japanese surrender. After circumnavigating the globe, he was discharged from active duty on December 12, 1945, at Nashville, TN. He returned to Dill City and married his sweetheart, Wilma Evelyn Jones, on April 20, 1946, a union that would continue for the next 75 years. They lived in Dill City, OK, where they had four children: Gaylon, Sue, Anita, and Gordon. He farmed and worked in the Civil Service at Clinton-Sherman Air Force Base until 1970, when he transferred to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Fort Supply Reservoir near Fort Supply, OK. David helped maintain the facilities and grounds and was responsible for keeping weather records, checking gate and water levels, and managing the freshwater treatment facility. He completed his GED in 1978 at Woodward, OK. After his retirement in 1982, David and Wilma returned to the family farm in Dill City where he worked part-time at the cotton gin and tended a large vegetable garden. In June of 2013, they moved to their present home in Elk City, OK, where he promptly converted a large portion of the back yard for his garden. David was a quiet, selfless, considerate man; a devoted and loyal son, husband, father, and friend. He attended the Elk Creek Primitive Baptist Church where he often led singing. He helped with the Boy Scout Troop in Dill City and was also a member of the American Legion there. He began donating blood as a young man and continued until he was well into his 90’s. He liked to travel and visited most of the States and numerous countries. He attended several reunions with his Lansdowne shipmates over the years. He also enjoyed spending time with family and friends, listening to music, singing, photography, and bird watching, but his passion was his vegetable garden and bird feeders. He loved playing cards, board games, and dominoes, especially with family. Like all farmers, he was a weatherman at heart. He was preceded in death by his son, Gaylon; his father and mother; his brother, Jesse; two sisters, Ila Haralson and Audrey Wilson; and three infant siblings. He is survived by his wife, Wilma, of the home in Elk City, OK; his brother, Glen, of Elk City; two daughters, Sue Huddleston and husband, Dave, of Elk City, and Anita Clayton and husband, Clay, also of Elk City; a daughter-in-law, Florence, of Clinton, OK; a son, Gordon and his wife, Valorie, of Fort Collins, CO; 12 grandchildren, 15 great grandchildren; one great-great grandson; and numerous nieces and nephews. He will be always loved, fondly remembered, and sorely missed.