Laura Deibler Drum

Laura Deibler Drum of Norman, Oklahoma, passed away peacefully on Thursday, May 25, 2017. She died of natural causes at the age of 88 years old.

Laura was born the youngest of six sisters on November 23, 1928, in Lykens, Pennsylvania, to Laura Geist Deibler and Homer Gilbert Deibler. After graduating from Lykens High School, she met her husband, William ("Bill") Martin Drum, of Williamstown, Pennsylvania, at a dance. They later married on August 6, 1949, in the United Brethren Church, in Lykens, Pennsylvania, officiated by the Rev. H. S. Keifer.

Over the next sixteen years, Laura and Bill were blessed with five children: Deborah Rose of Anchorage, Alaska, William Drum of Chesapeake, Virginia, Nadeen Miles of Palatine, Illinois, Robert Drum of Edmond, Oklahoma, and Jonathan Drum, of north Norman, Oklahoma. They all moved to Norman, Oklahoma, when Bill was transferred to Tinker Air Force Base in 1965.

Laura's greatest joy came in raising and caring for her family and spending time with friends. Family meals, celebrating national holidays, Sunday services at McFarlin United Methodist Church, extended phone calls to family and friends, weekly pinochle games, trips back to Pennsylvania, decorating their home for holidays and extending the use of their Christmas tree to be decorated for Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, and sometimes even Easter, was the heart and soul of her life.

Laura was preceded in death by her husband, Bill (1920-1998), and her five sisters, May, Olga, Ruth, Melba, and Betty. She leaves behind her five children, ten grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren, scattered across the country.

Graveside services are scheduled for 2:00 pm Tuesday, May 30, 2017, at the Sunset Memorial Park, with Pastor Wendi Neal of McFarlin Memorial United Methodist Church officiating.