Frankie Jean Oliver

December 11, 1934 – February 24, 2021

Born in Christiansburg, Virginia, Frankie was raised in the farm country of tiny Newport, Virginia with her parents Mila Lillian Reynolds Sibold and Frank Watson Sibold and her Sibold sisters Sarah, Edith, Dolly, Eleanor, and Louise, as well as her 2nd cousin Duane “Johnnie” Freeborn.

Frankie was a natural leader and was president of her Newport High School class! After one year at Radford College, she enrolled in Lynchburg College graduating in June 1955 with a degree in Christian Education. She played basketball for two years at Lynchburg College and always said she was a “pretty good player.”

In July 1955 Frankie moved to Bluefield, West Virginia to take the job of Director of Religious Education at First Christian Church of the Disciples of Christ (DOC) denomination. She planned Christian education activities, led church youth programs, and directed DOC summer camps. Breaking new ground, Frankie even took inter-racial groups of church youth across the state of West Virginia to church youth meetings, no easy feat at that time. She also met William Franklin “Shank” Oliver Jr. of Bluefield, and they hit it off and were married on June 23, 1956.

On December 31, 1957 her first child William Franklin Oliver III “Lin” was born, and shortly after the family moved to the sunny desert in Tucson, Arizona. Frankie and Shank settled in, became members of First Christian Church in Tucson, and by the end of 1962 had three more mouths to feed as Daniel Thomas Oliver, Jeanne Leigh Oliver, and Kelly Dee Oliver joined Lin, and the family became six.

In 1963, Shank and Frankie had an opportunity to buy a home in the Tucson Mountain area with five acres of land, so they took a “Faith Jump” and bought it on a handshake from a retired missionary friend. The Oliver Ranch is still in the family and Frankie was able to be there throughout all of her last days. This home was always a special place for Frankie as she would sit on the porch and draw, talk, listen, and just observe the Sonoran Desert and its creatures in a way that only she could. The Oliver Ranch has brought serenity and joy to so many people over the years.

Frankie started a private Kindergarten in the 1960s and helped integrate Kindergarteners into public schools. She also helped organize food co-ops (1970s) for families to buy affordable food. As attitudes in the local DOC community began to change, Frankie became the first woman elder at First Christian Church and after taking seminary classes at Claremont School of Theology and Pacific School of Religion was eventually ordained (1986). She held Co-Pastor positions first at Broadway Christian Church and then at First Christian Church on Speedway, after which she was an interim pastor in Arizona City, Arizona. Frankie, and her son Dan, are believed to be the first mother/son ordained ministers in the DOC denomination. Her years of effort and leadership roles with interfaith community organizing in the Tucson area, Humane Borders, Church Women United, Disciples Quadrennial, and the numerous awards she received throughout her life attest to the tireless way she ministered to and touched the lives of many people. These awards include a copper embossed Certificate of Appreciation from the Mayor of Tucson (1992), a Valiant Woman Award from Church Women United (2003) and a Certificate of Recognition for Excellence in Ministry from First Christian Church (2010), among many others.

Frankie and Shank were married for 52 years when he passed away in 2009. After his passing, Frankie enjoyed several years at the Manor at Midvale Retirement Community on the south side of Tucson where she met and married Jim Daley and had four incredible years together. Jim was a wonderful man, and his entire family was a great addition to her family. During her years at the Manor at Midvale, Frankie was an active member of Desert Dove Christian Church.

Frankie is survived by her sister Eleanor Sibold Munsey of Abingdon, Virginia; her four children Dr. William F. Oliver III and wife Debbie Currier Oliver with sons William IV, Christopher and Timothy of Fayetteville, Arkansas; Rev. Daniel T. Oliver and wife Jeannie Shin-Oliver with daughter Madison of Orange, California; Jeanne Leigh Oliver with children Keane Ray and wife Kelly Ray, Kacia Ray, and Kyla Ray and husband Taylor Johnson of Erie, Colorado; and Kelly Dee Young and husband Steve Young with children Tray, Mila, Kim Brooks and husband Will, and Brian Young and wife Patti of Tucson, Arizona. Great Grandchildren include Lily Ray, Everly and Oakley Johnson, Liv and Cohen Ray, Austin and Stayton Brooks, Kylie, Drew and Hayden Young, Makayla, and Jalen. From the Daley family, she is survived by stepsons Rob and wife Lynn Daley, Scott Daley, and Tim and wife Kim Daley. Frankie also had 11 step-grandchildren and 13 step-great grandchildren on the Daley side and was proud of everyone.

Frankie always proclaimed that she loved her family. The last coherent words she said were “I love my children.” We all celebrate Frankie’s wonderful life and know her spirit lives on in the lives of everyone she touched and loved!

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.HeatherMortuary.com for the Oliver family.