OLEN JEFFRIES

QUITMAN, TEXAS-Graveside services for Olen Charles Jeffries, 95, Quitman, Texas are 2:00 p.m. Tuesday at Memorial Park Cemetery in Ada, Oklahoma, Rev. Ray Talbott will officiate.

Mr. Jeffries died Friday, July 31, 2009 at his home in Quitman, Texas. He was born January 25, 1914 at Jenks, Oklahoma to Charles and Ella Ida Bridges Jeffries. He graduated from Meridian High School. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Library Science from the University of Oklahoma, a Master's degree in Librarianship at Denver University, and an Education Specialist Degree at Eastern New Mexico University in Portales, New Mexico. He moved to Farmington, New Mexico from Lawton, Oklahoma.

He married Reba Frances Hallum on April 11, 1953 in Clovis, New Mexico.

Mr. Jeffries served in the U. S. Navy during World War II from April 1942 until July 1945. After being discharged form the Navy, he was employed as a SP5 Junior Library Assistant at the Artillery and Guided Missile School at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. There he served at various times as Head of the Reference Section, Head of Classification Section, head cataloger, Chief of the Catalog Section, Card Cataloger maintenance and book orderer. He was a Supervisor for eight years and an Administrator from three years.

In 1957, he moved to Fort Sumner, New Mexico. He was librarian and high school English teacher for the Fort Sumner Municipal schools. In 1960, he became librarian at Zia Junior High school in Artesia, New Mexico. Five years later, he became the assistant principal and sixth grade teacher at Grand Heights Elementary school in Artesia. He became an English instructor at the Roswell Branch of Eastern New Mexico University in Roswell. In 1968, Olen and his wife Reba were employed as sixth grade teachers with the Farmington Municipal Schools in Farmington. He taught sixth grade at Northeast Elementary school for one year then became full time English Instructor and librarian at San Juan College, a branch of New Mexico State University, Las Cruces. To complete his teaching career, he taught 6th grade for two years at Swinburne Elementary school.

In 1975 he retired after teaching 18 years.

Survivors include his wife of 56 years, Reba Jeffries, of the home; a daughter, Susan Dodge, Dallas, Texas; a son, Charles Jeffries, Altus, Oklahoma; two granddaughters, Amy Shiring, Denton, Texas and Jennifer Rowe, California; a grandson, Christopher Shiring, Plano, Texas; a great grandson; a great granddaughter; and a sister-in-law, Opal Jeffries, Tuttle.

He was preceded in death by his parents, a son, William Daniel Jeffries, Dallas, TX; five sisters, Lena Caughron, Mary Edwards, Ida Smith, Opal Douglas and Clara Warren; and three brothers, Roy Jeffries, Bill Jeffries and Everett Jeffries.

Criswell Funeral Home, Ada