EDMOND —
On January 8, 2013, the world lost one of its finest southern gentlemen. Louis Ford, 84, loving husband and father, whistled his way through Heaven’s Pearly Gates. He was born December 26, 1928 in Lancaster Ky., to Patsy Kinnard and Elizah Evans Ford. Louis was the youngest brother of Jim and Bascom.
Louis received his Bachelor’s degree in Geology from the University of Kentucky and was a member of SAE. After serving in the Army, he completed his Master of Science degree in Geology and began working at Texaco.
In 1957, Louis met Gayle Carleen Wolff and proposed after dating only three weeks. Louis was rapidly promoted at Texaco and transferred to a new city each time. He and his wife planted roots in Oklahoma City. He worked at Walter Duncan, where he was later promoted to chief geologist. He spent many years at Duncan and made lifelong friends there.
In the 1980’s, Louis opened his own company, Ford Exploration, in Edmond, Okla. He had logs, oil deals, and cigar ashes everywhere. It was his man cave and he worked daily until he and Gayle moved to Burbank, Calif. in 2010.
Louis loved to fish. He was an avid hunter and loved playing tennis, working out at Pacer, harvesting pecans, Vanessie’s in Santa Fe, summers in Colorado, chili “re-lay-nos”, and ice cream. He loved to tap dance in the kitchen. He would pick on a banjo, ukulele, or piano, play poorly and out of tune, but happily. He loved movies, particularly comedies, dogs, reading comics, jazz, and making money.
Louis was co-founder of the Oklahoma City Geological Foundation, and started this mission with $200. It now supports educational activities with a $1.1 million budget. As such, he was named a Legend of OKC by the Geological Society in November 2012. In addition to his involvement with AAPG and SIPES, Louis was a member of Westminster Presbyterian Church and loved his Sunday school class and friendships there.
Louis is survived by his wife of 55 years, Gayle; his three daughters and sons-in-law, Melissa Ford and Jeff Hulett of Encinitas, Calif., Penny and David Adams of Sierra Madre, Calif., and Wendy and Mike Mackey of Austin, Texas; his grandchildren Skylar Mackey, and Andrew Adams and wife Dianne; great-grandchildren Emerson and Annabel Adams, and many other friends and relatives.
The service will be January 19, 2013 at Ramsey Funeral Home in Lancaster, Ky.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Oklahoma Geological Foundation at www.okcgeofoundation.org or the Alzheimer’s Association at www.alz.org.
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