John W. Hicks
John William Hicks was born in Prague, Oklahoma, to William and Virgal (Keller) Hicks, on February 9, 1924. He was the third of four children - Ernest, June, John and Leroy.
At the young age of eighteen John joined the U.S. Navy on June 19, 1942. After enlistment he attended Naval Medical School in Bethesda, Maryland. From there he was assigned to the Pacific fleet as a hospital corpsman.
In the United States Navy during World War II, hospital corpsmen were assigned to Marine units. Corpsmen served on thousands of ships and submarines. The Hospital Corps has the distinction of being the only corps in the U.S. Navy to be commended in a famous speech by Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal after the conclusion of the war.
He was on ships in the Asiatic-Pacific Theatre and earned medals and awards to include the American Theatre, Asiatic-Pacific Theatre (3 stars), Phillipine Liberation Ribbon, Navy Occupation Service Medal and WWII Victory Medal. John did not talk about these years often but one can only imagine what he faced.
After the war John re-enlisted in the Navy.
Upon returning home on leave, John married Evelyn Josephine Heath on May 3, 1947. The ceremony was held in the Irving Baptist Church.
Since John was next assigned to Hawii, he and his young wife Evelyn packed up and headed that way -- out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean far away from family and friends. After that assignment the couple went to the National Navy Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. When John finally retired from the Navy on November 20, 1961, he had served for twenty years.
The couple eventually returned to Waurika, purchased a home on Florida Street and began enjoying getting back to family and friends. As anyone who knew John knows - next to a pretty vehicle (of which he had numerous) - he loved to fish. He spent most of his time on a lake, on the shore, or on the edge of a pond fishing.
He and Evelyn celebrated their seventy-first anniversary this year. By that date John's life had changed. They sold their home last year and moved to Duncan to the Chisholm Trail Assisted Lving Residence. John was no longer able to drive and as his mobility continued to decline he was no longer able to enjoy his passions.
He was hospitalized in May, tranferred to a hospital in Oklahoma City and finally passed away on June 29, at the age of 94. We all know where to find John in heaven -- just look for a good catfishing hole and that's where he'll be.