Johnny Richard Searle

Johnny Richard Searle, better-known simply as John, succumbed to a month-long battle with Covid-19 on the evening of August 12, 2021. Though fully vaccinated, John became an early “breakthrough” case in early July. John lived a full life as a thirty-year member of Oklahoma’s Department of Human Services, a beloved husband, father, grandfather and dog dad, an avid and strategic card player, a lover of Oklahoma sports, old-time country music, breakfast, and world cuisine.

John was born in Bartlesville, Oklahoma on January 15, 1945, to John and Ona (Brown) Searle.

He was the second youngest of 7 siblings – Jean Lawrence, Bill Searle, Don Searle, Ruth Ann Keaton, Brenda Jetton and Martha Searle. He was a 1963 graduate of Bartlesville College High School, a 1967 graduate of Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, OK and did post-graduate study at Tulane University in New Orleans.

John began his career in human services as a social worker and a financial assistance supervisor for Tulsa County. He later became the DHS County Administrator, for Latimer County in Wilburton. In the early 1970s, John began a lengthy service at the Oklahoma State DHS office supervising state work and training programs. John served as the Chief Administrator of the State of Oklahoma Refugee Resettlement Department, a position he loved dearly, where he oversaw the economic development, language and community integration needs for Vietnamese refugees to OKC and beyond. He completed his service with DHS as a Policy and Analysis Program Administrator retiring in 1997. John was well-regarded in the human services sector and was an active member of the American Public Welfare Association (now APHSA).

On May 30, 1976, John married his wife Deborah in Las Vegas at the World-Famous Chapel of the Bells. The two spent 45 wonderful years together raising their children Travis and Elizabeth and enjoyed countless casino and family trips over the years. He loved his kids and his grandson Michael, playing cards with the “old poker boys” (a crew of colleagues from DHS), watching the OSU Cowboys (his favorite color had to be orange!) and spending time dining out with his friends, family, and his grandson Michael.

John was preceded in death by his parents, siblings, and a father and mother-in-law, Othal and Nina Williams. He is survived by his wife Deborah, his son Travis Searle and Lisa Foster (Louisville, KY), his daughter Elizabeth and Eric Rogers, (Edmond, OK), his daughter Jennifer and Chris Nelson, (Oak Grove, MN) and a much beloved grandson, Michael Edward Rogers of Edmond, OK. He is also survived by many nieces and nephews and friends. Funeral arrangements are under the direction of Chapel Hill Funeral Home in Oklahoma City with burial in the Memorial Gardens. Due to the threat of Covid-19, the family will hold only small private services at this time. A full celebration of John’s life will occur at a safer future date for all his friends and family. A “great man gone,” as one friend posted, but certainly never forgotten.