Kenneth Lee Haile

Former pastor and probation and parole supervisor, Kenneth, was always giving of himself in the service of others.    Born September 7, 1935, in Westfork, Arkansas, Ken had just reached his 86th birthday as he recovered from the effects of Covid in a south Tulsa hospital.  On Monday, September 13th, 2021, he was in good spirits and looking forward to being discharged from the hospital, when he was stricken with a sudden and unrecoverable medical event and was admitted into his eternal home in heaven.

Ken joined the Navy at age 18 and was stationed in Alameda, California, where he met his future wife.  Walking down the street in Alameda, he heard singing from a local church and was drawn inside by the music.  As he entered the building his eyes met a tall, beautiful girl singing in the choir and he was immediately smitten.  This only was his second time to ever be in a church and it was here that he met the Lord and was saved.  His profession of faith in Jesus Christ as his savior and Lord was followed by his baptism.  It wasn't long before he and Shirley were married in that same Baptist church in 1955.

As his Navy service was winding down in Kingsville, Texas, he and Shirley were blessed by the arrival of their first daughter, Debra Ann, in 1957.  That same year he felt called to enter the ministry and began to seek direction as a minister of the gospel.  Ordained to preach in 1960, he pastored churches in Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Kansas, and was known for his dynamic and passionate preaching style and his love for the truth and his congregation.  In 1964 the family was blessed by another new addition, Sue Ann, who was born in Arkansas.

In 1974 Ken decided to shift gears and became a probation and parole officer in Oklahoma.  Serving in the Department of Corrections and Capitol Police, he continued in part time ministry and preaching in various churches, and eventually retired from the Oklahoma Department of Corrections in 1997.  He was also a firearms instructor for the State of Oklahoma.  Many lives were touched by his kind heart and steady hand.

Ken was a craftsman and loved woodworking and knife making.  His beautiful oak clocks, grandfather clocks, breadboxes, and other furniture pieces blessed many family members and friends.  He hand crafted dozens of knives with exotic polished wooden handles and gave most of them away to friends and family.  Along the way he also learned leather craft and made many holsters for knives and guns.  Ken was truly an artist who loved to create beautiful things.

Kenneth was preceded in death by his parents, Clarence and Sina Haile, and his sister Thelma Martinez.  He is survived by his beloved wife, Shirley of 65 years, as well as his sister, Donna Jenkins, his daughters and their husbands Debra and Dan Edwards and Sue and Gary Conner, 6 grandchildren: Danielle Kirkland, Derek Edwards, Danae Faaiu, Lee Conner, Cory Conner, Lauren Morgan, and 16 great-grandchildren.  He was dearly loved by all and was known as Papa (Pa Paw) by his grandchildren and great-grandchildren.