Natalie Gale Myers, 88, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024.
Natalie was born to Della Mae (Cannon) and Charles Vernon Petty on Jan. 18, 1936, in Chanute. She was raised in Chanute, the oldest of four children, including two younger brothers, Darold and Tony, and the youngest, a sister, Marcille.
In 1952, Natalie went skating with her girlfriends on a Friday night in Chanute. There she met Dale, the man many years later she would still say thrilled her when he walked into the room. If you asked Natalie, she would recount that Dale’s freshly ironed shirt, polite manners and graceful skating drew her to him. According to Dale, Natalie’s beautiful smile was pure magic … along with how those skates and short shorts showed off her pretty legs. Either way, true love sparked and hand in hand they faced the challenges and joys of life together for over 67 years.
Shortly after their marriage in February 1953, Dale and Natalie moved to Fort Bragg, North Carolina, where Dale served in the Army. From there they moved back to Kansas and started both a family and a quest for Dale to get a college education. Their first son, Larry Dale, was born in March 1955. His time on Earth was short and Natalie has been anticipating their heavenly reunion since January 1956. This great sadness in the lives of Natalie and Dale was eventually accompanied by joy with the birth of three more children in the coming years: Duane Eugene, Terri Gale and Lynette Kay. With Natalie’s great support, Dale received a bachelor’s degree from Kansas State University in Manhattan and a master’s degree from the University of Tulsa. Dale would always recount that his achievements were a team effort. Natalie managed their household with love and patience, living in cramped married student housing, operating on a shoestring budget and keeping their growing family well cared for (and occasionally quiet) so Dale could focus on his studies. Their efforts paid off, and Dale and Natalie experienced adventure and success with Dale’s involvement in the Apollo spacecraft mission and then a career in electrical engineering with American Airlines in Tulsa, Oklahoma, until Dale’s retirement in 1990.
Natalie was a wonderful mother and homemaker, devoting herself to her family, tending to their needs and encouraging them in all their activities. Once her children left the household, Natalie satisfied a lifelong desire to obtain a college degree of her own. She achieved that goal in 1984, earning an early education degree from Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. Not long after receiving her degree, Natalie became a grandma and again dedicated herself to her family. She loved her grandkids and would put aside whatever she was doing if the opportunity came to spend time, tell stories and make a happy memory with a grandchild, or eventually a great-grandchild.
Natalie’s other interests included traveling with Dale, reading and artistic pursuits such as ceramics and painting. She had an eye for unique and beautiful things and collected many bells over the years. Natalie took great pleasure in her pets, including dogs, cats and canaries. Her gentle, quiet, sweet spirit attracted animals, and she found a home for many a stray, and provided many a hurt creature a chance to recover. She loved children and babies, and they responded and loved her right back. Audrey Hepburn once said, “elegance is the only beauty that never fades,” and Natalie’s family will always remember her as both elegant and beautiful.
Natalie is survived by a son, Duane Myers of Carthage, Missouri; two daughters, Terri (Tom) Prusator of Afton, Oklahoma, and Lynette (Dan) Brown of Henryetta, Oklahoma; grandchildren, Danielle Myers, Paige (Kyler) Bybee, Ashley (Justin) Henson, Michael (Dawn) Prusator, Brenden (Valerie) Brown, Weston Brown, Jeremy Brown and Tyler Schmidt; great-grandchildren, Thomas, Natalie Mae, Viviann, Bear and Lily Gale; and her siblings, Tony Petty and Marcille Callarman.
Natalie was preceded in death by her parents, Della and Charles Petty; her husband, Dale; their son, Larry Dale; and her brother, Darold.
A graveside service will be at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 5, at Memorial Park Cemetery in Chanute under the direction of Countryside Funeral Home. She will be laid to rest next to Dale. If you are compelled to make an offering in memory of Natalie, the family would suggest helping to support your local pet shelter during these upcoming winter months when their needs are especially great.
