Shirley Louise Carpenter

Shirley Louise (Bice) Carpenter, age 79, was born on September 10, 1946, in Batesville, Arkansas, and passed away at home in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on December 23, 2025.

Shirley was a woman of faith, strength, and steady purpose—a true “doer” whose life was marked by service, devotion to family, and a quiet competence that blessed everyone around her. She was deeply committed to her family, her work, and the friendships she nurtured throughout her life.

On June 3, 1965, Shirley married her childhood sweetheart, Leonard Wayne Carpenter. Together, they built a life rooted in partnership and adventure. In the early 1970s, before starting their family, Shirley worked for Cities Service Company in Key Punch and spent a brief season modeling—a short but memorable chapter that reflected her confidence.

In the mid-1970s, Shirley and Leonard worked for Arctic Constructors on the Trans-Alaska Pipeline Project in Fairbanks, Alaska. This time became one of their great adventures and the beginning of deep friendships with other couples—relationships that truly lasted a lifetime. Leonard preceded her in death on September 1, 2006.

Shirley was a devoted mother to her two daughters, Kari and Lori, whom she raised with love as a stay-at-home mom for many years. She later returned to work, serving Redeemer Covenant Church in Tulsa from 1994 to 1999. She used her professional skills as a Certified Professional Secretary and played a meaningful role in the church’s growth during that season.

After retirement, Shirley devoted herself to helping raise her grandsons in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. More recently, she spent a short season living in Salado, Texas, and Fayetteville, Arkansas, before returning to Tulsa. She was a longtime and active member of the Embroiderers’ Guild of Oklahoma and found great joy in cross-stitch, needlepoint, reading, puzzles, and sharing lunches and shopping outings with friends.

Shirley is survived by her two daughters and their husbands, Kari and Shawn Armstrong, and Lori and Matt McWhirt; four grandsons, Peyton Carpenter, his partner Jessica Forehand, and their children Sakar and Philip; Tristan Carpenter, his partner Shuyu Wang; Dawson Carpenter; and Colton Cawthorne. She is also survived by her sisters, Nita Jean (Bice) Maier and Rebecca (Bice) Greenwood as well as many beloved nieces, nephews, and extended family members. Shirley was preceded in death by her husband Leonard Wayne Carpenter; her parents, William & Berniece (Tomlinson) Bice; her in-laws, Edith (Mooney) Carpenter & Gerald Carpenter, all of Ozark. Also predeceased were her brothers-in-law, Jerry Maier and Alan Dirk Greenwood.

A visitation will be held in Tulsa at Floral Haven Funeral Home on December 31, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Funeral services will be held at Shaffer Funeral Home in Ozark, Arkansas, on Saturday, January 3, with visitation in the chapel from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m., followed by the funeral service at 2:00 p.m. Graveside services will follow at Highland Cemetery, where Shirley will be laid to rest beside her husband and her parents-in-law.

Flowers may be sent to Shaffer Funeral Home, or in lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation at dogood.t2t.org in Shirley’s name—she loved honoring the many veterans in her family. “In Memory Of” cards may be mailed to P.O. Box 130, Beaver, Arkansas 72613, as part of the donation process.

Shirley’s life was a testament to faith lived out in everyday ways—through work done well, relationships tended with care, and love given freely. She will be deeply missed and lovingly remembered.