Jill Adrienne Housley

Jill Adrienne Housley was born on January 7, 1941 to Adrian Park and Wanda Elizabeth Housley in Olney, Illinois. She passed away on October 15, 2018 in Norman, Oklahoma.

Jill was raised in a Pure Oil Company oil camp outside of Clay City, Illinois. She attended her elementary school years in Clay City and graduated from high school there. Following high school, she attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois. Jill was stricken with polio when she was 12 years of age, just a short time before the polio vaccine became available. This left her with physical handicaps throughout her life, which she coped with in an independent, determined, and self-sufficient manner.

Jill moved to Oklahoma City where she had some family after attending several years of college. She was employed as an underwriter for Security General Insurance Company for many years and then worked as a secretary in an Oklahoma City law firm. As her physical limitations became more restrictive, she moved to Norman where she worked as an artist from her home. She especially loved painting landscapes and animal portraits; she painted many pet portraits and child portraits for clients. She was a student for some years of Carol Armstrong.

Jill loved animals and rescued many. There was rarely a time in her life when she did not own a dog or a cat. She had a special love of cats and she also had a love of wildlife. She built shelters for feral animals to take refuge in and always had an ongoing project. She was quite industrious.

Jill was also a person of deep faith and was a member of North Haven Baptist Church.

Jill will be especially remembered as someone who loved art of all kinds, animals, and old movies, as well as a deep love for her family. She was a kind person who was genuinely curious about the world. These two attributes made her a great listener. Though she was quite strong willed, she had a fun sense of humor and was an easy person to be around. That sense of humor and her unique and inspiring personality will be sorely missed by her family.

Jill is survived by: sister Jane Benedum and her husband, Ben of Norman; brother Jim Housley and his wife Patti of Sanford, Florida; uncle Jerry Housley; and four cousins: Judy Ellis, Joe Housley, Jo Lynn Shanley, and Rob McFarlane. She is also survived by three nieces: Traci Quick and husband Todd Fagin and their daughter Eleanor of Norman, Becki Quick and husband Manuel Otero of Eugene, Oregon, and Meghan Cruzen and her children Emerie, Maeve, and Griffin of Norman.

A family celebration of life service will be held graveside on November 2, 2018 at the Hominy Memorial Cemetery on State Highway 99 in Hominy, Oklahoma where Jill will be buried next to her parents.

The family wishes to thank the many kind and caring staff at Cedar Creek Nursing Center, most especially Melissa Kelley, for all her loving care of Jill. They also wish to thank Kindful Hospice for their competent and wonderful care and kindness to Jill and her family this past year. We are also eternally grateful to our family friend, Cindy Updefraff for her caring, loving and faithful care of Jill, and of her friendship to our family.