Donna Jean (Ray) Spyres

Funeral Service for Donna Jean (Ray) Spyres, 82 of Marble City, Oklahoma will be at 1:00 PM on Monday, June 17, 2024 at Landmark Missionary Baptist Church in Vian, Oklahoma. Burial will follow at Marble City Cemetery in Marble City, Oklahoma under the direction of Agent Mallory Martin Funeral Service, Inc.

Donna passed this life on June 12, 2024. She was born April 28, 1942 in Gore, Oklahoma to Russell and LaVerne (Corley) Ray. She graduated from Sallisaw High School in 1960. She married Dewey “Bo” Monroe Spyres on November 22, 1963, and they were married for 55 years at his passing. Donna later returned to school at Northeastern State University where she graduated with honors while working and maintaining her home. 

Together with Bo, she raised their three children in a loving Christian home and served the Lord at Vian Landmark Missionary Baptist Church where she taught Sunday School, directed Faith Bible Institute for several years, and assisted with crafts and snacks during Vacation Bible School. She also helped provide meals for grieving families and shut-ins, sharing God’s love for them with her delicious cooking. 

Donna worked many different jobs over the years including being an aide at the nursing home, working for Southwestern Bell, and later at People, Inc. in Sallisaw, Oklahoma where she stayed until her retirement. Retirement then freed up her time to be able to spend more time serving the Lord in her church and to work on one of her favorite hobbies, genealogy. Together with her sister Susan, she researched and created family histories for each of their families, and assisted others in researching their own family trees. One of her favorite projects was a church history book she prepared for her church, Landmark Missionary Baptist Church.

She is survived by her children, Rusti Tomlin of Marble City, Barry and Carolyn Spyres of Marble City, and Steve and Amber Spyres of Vian; her grandchildren, Raegan Hensley, Taylor and Nathan Chadwell, Hannah and Sheldon Caughman, Jacob Spyres, Benjamin and Caitlin Spyres, Madison Spyres, and Gideon Spyres; her great-grandchildren, Addilyn, Hadlee, Knox, Maddox, Bo, Jax, and Lydia; and her sister, Susan Fullbright. She was preceded in death by her husband, Dewey Spyres; parents, Russell and LaVerne Ray; her granddaughter, Megan Hensley, and great-granddaughter, Hope Spyres.

She will be remembered by her family and friends as a wonderful cook, an organizational whiz, an upstanding Christian, a kind-hearted and generous friend, a loving mother, Aunt Pico, a wonderful big sister, and the best Mema ever. She lived her life in a way that clearly showed what was most important to her… The Lord and her family. 

“Like branches on a tree, we all grow in different directions yet our roots remain as one.” – Suzy Kassem