Former East Central coach passes
Ken Turner of Ada was the longtime baseball coach at East Central University. The school named its baseball field after Turner in 2014.
A farewell to people with Oklahoma ties who enjoyed the game day experience:
•Ken Turner, 83, of Ada was a longtime coach at East Central University. From 1967 to 1990, Turner was head baseball coach and an assistant men’s basketball coach under
Jerry Anderson. Turner spent 23 years as baseball coach, and the Tigers’ won 467 games. He was Oklahoma Intercollegiate Conference Coach of the Year in 1979.
In October 2014, the school named its baseball diamond Ken Turner Field. Turner was also chairman of the department of health, physical education and recreation.
•Don Bucy, 80, of Pryor was the longtime flag man at Tulsa Speedway. He enjoyed sprint car racing and NASCAR and visiting with Oklahoma’s dirt track racing legends. Bucy owned Don’s Grill and a Mayflower moving agency.
•Martha Fullerton, 82, of Norman. The former office manager of Bergen Foods held season tickets for Oklahoma football for several years.
•Larry Codding, 65, of Copan. He was a football and basketball player at Copan High School. He then played basketball at Northeastern A&M Junior College, where he earned an associate degree in accounting.
Codding spent 30 years working in finance for Phillips Petroleum. He often played golf at the Caney Country Club. He was an avid St. Louis Cardinals
baseball follower and claimed to be the No. 1 OU football fan.
•Ras Rasmussen, 81, of Weatherford was a Marine drill sergeant during the Korean War. After his discharge, he joined the rodeo circuit and rode bulls. He later worked for the Texas Bureau of Narcotics.
•Lyle Barnard, 66, of Leedey. He loved roping and tutored many young cowboys and cowgirls in the sport. Barnard spent more than 20 years with the Leedey Roping Club and enjoyed team roping with his brother Eddie.
Lyle owned ice and peach businesses and was a volunteer EMT.
•Fred Salazar, 94, of Norman played industrial league baseball, softball and basketball while working as a welder in Oklahoma City. The World War II veteran played golf and was a league bowler.
•Chuck Lanham Jr., 86, of Tulsa was a big Oklahoma State football and basketball fan. He and wife Greta attended both home and away football games for 20 years. Chuck worked for the Boy Scouts of America, serving as a scout executive in Tulsa, Baltimore and Fargo, N.D.
•John Bundren, 91, of Tulsa was an analytical chemist who participated in the
Phillips 66 Bowling League. He retired in 1985 after 34 years at Phillips Petroleum. Bundren and wife Betty then became avid golfers. John was an Army veteran who served in Europe during World War II.
•Cash Chrisman, 40, of Yukon. He played baseball at Putnam City West High School. The outfielder batted .417 as a senior and was an honorable mention selection on The Oklahoman’s Big All-City team.
Chrisman played college ball at Northeastern A&M and Southwestern State. After his playing days, Chrisman was an umpire and basketball referee.
He had a landscaping business in Oklahoma City.
•Ray Ford, 72, of Pryor. He co-owned and operated the old Osage Creek Golf Course in Adair.
•Neal Stauffer, 61, of Tulsa was an avid runner. He competed in many 5K races and ran with friends who called themselves the Fleet Feet Group. He was an avid St. Louis Cardinals and OU football fan.
•Frank Antone, 70, of Oklahoma City played baseball throughout his youth years. The Queens, N.Y., native was raised in Lawton, where he pitched for the Wolverines in high school.
The left-hander earned a baseball scholarship to Southwestern State. In one game in 1967, Northwestern State pitcher Jerry Garrison threw a no-hitter vs. Southwestern State — but the Rangers lost the game, 2-1.
Southwestern State scored both of its runs in the fourth inning on a walk, a fielder’s choice and a throwing error. The Bulldogs’ pitcher that day was Antone, who threw a one-hitter.
•Gene Staggs, 77, of Seminole. He was a member of the Oklahoma State Trap Association. In 1978, Staggs won the Class C state title in registered trap singles. He was a car sales associate.
•Harold Mann, 83, of Ada once lived in California, where he worked on high-performance racing motors. He was an Air Force veteran.