Wayne Spears

F. Wayne Spears passed from this life to be with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on October 2, 202, and lived a varied and enormously rich life. He was born just east of Pawnee, Oklahoma to Fred Spears and Trula McKinley Spears Gregor on June 8, 1938, spending most of his youth on the family farm near Hallett. He graduated from Cleveland High School in 1956, and moved to Oklahoma City for employment with the Wonder Potato Chip Company as a route man. He met and married the love of his life, Edna Toles, on September 15, 1961, moving to Holdenville and Lawton over the next few years with his job. They moved to Pawnee in 1965 to work with Wayne’s sister and brother-in-law, Bettye and Loyd Perrine in their furniture and hardware business. They purchased one-half the business in 1970 and the remainder in 1974, owning and operating Spears Furniture for another sixteen years. During his tenure in the store, Wayne was active in the Chamber of Commerce, being President three times, as well as the local Rotary Club. In addition, Wayne served in various leadership capacities of the Spring Livestock Show and supporting the local 4-H and FFA programs, being granted the Honorary State Farmer Degree in 1984. This was also the time he began as the Public Address Announcer for the Pawnee Black Bear football team, beginning in 1979 and continuing through 2010. After selling the store, Wayne accepted the new challenge of running for office and became the Pawnee County Assessor in 1990, being re-elected unopposed for three additional terms, retiring in 2006. Wayne was active in the State Assessor’s Association, being elected president for the 1998-1999 term. Stemming from his original race for the Assessor’s office, Wayne purchased a Leopard Appaloosa, Wye, to pull a buggy in parades, a decision that would alter the remaining years of his life. The attention garnered by this horse attracted the attention of the producers for a newly formed revival of the Pawnee Bill’s Wild West Show sponsored by the Oklahoma Department of Tourism and Wayne was asked to play the part of Pawnee Bill in 1991. He and Wye continued their roles for seventeen years, for both the Department of Tourism and The Oklahoma Historical Society delighting thousands of spectators and parade watchers across the state with their personalities and wit, extending as far as the Rose Parade in Pasadena California and the Calgary Stampede in Canada. Wayne was a tireless promoter of all things Pawnee and Oklahoma, including an appointment as ambassador for the Oklahoma Centennial Committee. Wayne has been a member of the First Baptist Church of Pawnee since 1966 as well as a Deacon, serving as Church Treasurer for over thirty years, and at various other leadership roles. Wayne is survived by: Wife:Edna Spears, Pawnee, Oklahoma Son:Roger Spears & his wife, Michelle, Mannford, Oklahoma Daughter:Jill Tucker & her husband, John, North Platte, Nebraska Grandchildren:Adam and Hannah Spears, Mannford, Oklahoma Blake and Mitchell Tucker, North Platte, Nebraska 2 Brothers:Bob Spears & his wife, Glenda, Livingston, Alabama Gary Spears & his wife, Chaunna, Enid, Oklahoma Plus a number of other relatives, and friends. Wayne was preceded in death by his parents, Fred Spears and Trula Spears Gregor; and two sisters, Louise Cross and her husband, R. B., and Bettye Perrine and her husband, Loyd. Services will be held at 10:00 a.m., Friday, October 5, 2012 at the First Baptist Church, Pawnee, Oklahoma with Dr. Charles Womack, David Tanner and Doug Sauter officiating. Interment will be at Highland Cemetery, Pawnee, Oklahoma, under the direction of Poteet Funeral Home, Pawnee, Oklahoma. Memorials may be made in Wayne’s memory to Friends of Pawnee Bill Ranch, P. O. Box 493, Pawnee, Oklahoma, 74058; First Baptist Church, 720 Sixth Street, Pawnee, Oklahoma, 74058, or Senior Nutrition Activity Fund, 304 Kansas Place, Pawnee, Oklahoma, 74058.