George Christian
George Edward Christian was born in Kingfisher in 1940.
He passed away Thursday, March 10, 2022, in his home on his farm in Kingfisher County, surrounded by loved ones. He was 82.
George has been under hospice care for nearly a year.
Like everything he did, he worked hard and managed to stay in this world as long as possible so he could be there for his wife LaWanna.
When George was a young boy he liked to play marbles.
His kids would later tease him that he had lost all of his marbles as a kid, because who in their right mind would work as hard as he did?
As George was growing up, he developed a mischievous streak and his older sister Roberta was often the target.
One time he invited himself to one of her dates by hiding in the back seat of the car and surprising her later.
In high school, George was very involved in the FFA, so much so that it was a fact that he spent more time on FFA trips than he did in the actual classroom.
His FFA stories are the stuff of legend, but unfortunately, none are printable.
He was proud to have earned the highest award achievable in the National FFA Organization, the American Farmer Degree.
Shortly after high school, George visited the local bank and found his true love, LaWanna Eberhardt, working there.
George married LaWanna in 1960 at the Omega Christian Church.
George and LaWanna did it all and they did it together.
They farmed 1,500 acres of wheat, rye, barley, mullet, alfalfa and haygrazer.
They had hundreds of head of stocker cattle and a herd of Simmental breeding stock. They also ran a dairy with up to 150 holstein cows that had to be milked twice a day, every day, regardless of the weather or holidays.
When milk prices fell, they launched Christian Cheese.
They spent many enjoyable weekends at the OSU Farmers Market meeting people and converting them into cheese lovers.
But, perhaps the most challenging job they had was raising their unruly children, Mike and Gina, into well-functioning adults.
It wasn’t all work though. George and LaWanna found time to spend with a close knit circle of friends that got together to play cards, ride motorcycles and even go on vacations together.
At one point, they got into square dancing and it was delightful to watch them dressed up, George in his western suit and shiny boots, LaWanna in her colorful dress with billowing skirt. They do-si-doed and promenaded with the best of them.
George was a loving husband and a caring man.
He taught his children to be loving, respectful and considerate of all people, from all walks of life. He was always curious and inquisitive, often asking people how tall they were and what was on their shoulder.
All who fell for his pranks will understand.
George, we will miss you. George was preceded in death by his parents Harold Franklin Christian and Erma Jean Svoboda and one sister, Roberta Jean Foster.
He is survived by his wife of 62 years, LaWanna Eberhardt; son Mike (Janice) Christian and daughter Gina (Harvey) Pratt; grandchildren Geordan Christian and Autumn (Robert) Christian (with the first expected great-grandchild on the way); brother-in-law James Foster; and three nieces, Susan Lippoldt, Lori Ruhl and Janet Doughtery.
Thank you to our earthly angels Maria Hernandez, Lina Tang, Emilita Espina, Elizabeth Mayo and Tammy Jones for your exceptional care of George and making his last year as loving and comfortable as possible.
A graveside service was 2p.m. Wednesday, March 16, at Kingfisher Cemetery under the direction of Sanders Funeral Service.