Helen Ruth Glasgow

Helen Ruth Glasgow, a beloved mother, grandmother, sister, friend, and longtime member of the Cleveland community, passed away peacefully, leaving behind a lifetime of memories, stories, laughter, and love that will continue to live on through the many people who knew and loved her.

Helen was born on August 12, 1934, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She was the daughter of Paul Howard and Ethel Howard. From an early age, Cleveland, Oklahoma, became a very special part of Helen's life. Beginning when she was just six years old, she spent her summers at her grandmother Lenore Johnston's boarding house in Cleveland. Those summers would become some of the most treasured memories of her childhood and would shape her lifelong love for the community she eventually called home.

Helen often enjoyed telling stories about Cleveland as she remembered it-the red brick road, the train depot, the old businesses, restaurants, theaters, skating rink, swimming pool, and the many people who made the town special. She could remember Cleveland as it once was in remarkable detail and loved sharing those memories with anyone willing to listen.

As a young girl, Helen was no stranger to hard work. While staying with her grandmother, she helped with the boarding house, doing laundry, cleaning bedrooms, changing sheets, and washing dishes. By the age of 11, she could handle nearly every chore that needed to be done. She fondly remembered those days, saying that once the work was finished, the rest of the day was hers.

Helen attended Central High School in Tulsa and later built a long and varied working life. She worked in the catering department at Anamark in Tulsa and spent many years working in restaurants and bars in both Tulsa and Cleveland. She was a bartender for more than 55 years and continued working when needed well into her later years. Her work ethic and determination were evident throughout her life.

Helen married Leland Glasgow in 1952 in Huntsville, Arkansas. She later raised three daughters as a single mother in a small town during the 1960s-a challenge she met with strength, determination, and an unwavering devotion to her children. Her daughters knew that, no matter what happened, their mother would always be there for them.

Helen was a woman with a strong personality and a mind of her own. She was not afraid to speak her mind, and those who knew her well would probably agree that if she didn't fuss at you every now and then, you might wonder if she really liked you! She was known for rearranging every workstation to suit the way she thought things should be done, and she certainly had her own way of doing things.

She also had a wonderful sense of humor and a zest for life. Helen enjoyed watching Jeopardy!, writing letters to the editors of the Tulsa World and the Cleveland American, and speaking up about issues that mattered to her. People would sometimes call her with a complaint and ask her to write a letter to the newspaper on their behalf. Helen always insisted she wasn't angry-she simply believed something needed to be said.

Music and dancing brought Helen great joy. She loved dancing at Twilight Beach in Duncan and could often be found doing the "Shuffle Off to Buffalo." Her love of that dance became one of her trademarks, and the song "Shuffle Off to Buffalo".

Helen also loved to travel, places Helen as visited are Amsterdam, Rome, Italy, and Tobruk, Libya and it was always a special time traveling with her family, creating memories that would last a lifetime.

One especially memorable family adventure was a trip celebrating Helen's 75th birthday with her daughters, Lynda, Gayla, and granddaughter Angela. The family lovingly-and humorously-called it "The Trip from Hell." Helen insisted they make it back to the hotel in time to watch Big Brother. During that trip, they also took her to Yellowstone National Park to see Old Faithful, a place that held special meaning because her father had taken her there when she was 10 years old.

But perhaps no place held a greater place in Helen's heart than Cleveland. She loved the town, its history, its people, and the memories she had made there. She once described Cleveland as a place that was "a mile long, a mile wide," with a former historic swimming pool and red brick road. Even as the community changed through the years, Helen believed that progress could never take away the memories she had made there.

One of the things Helen was most grateful for was moving to Cleveland with her three daughters. She cherished the memories they created together and took great pride in the life they shared. To Helen, family was everything.

Survivors are her three daughters, Lynda Ruth Houchin of Tulsa, Oklahoma; Kay Osburn and her husband, Butch, of Hominy, Oklahoma; and Gayla Smith and her husband, Darrell, of Cleveland, Oklahoma; ten grandchildren; twenty-seven great-grandchildren; seventeen great-great-grandchildren; and numerous cousins, extended family members, friends, coworkers, and acquaintances who will remember her fondly. a Helen was preceded in death by her parents, Paul and Ethel Howard; brother, Charles Howard Posy Howard; two grandsons, William Kyle Sutterfield and Richard Strong; and a son-in-law, John Houchin.

Helen's family would like to extend their heartfelt appreciation to everyone at Fairfax Behavioral Health & Memory Care not to forget Kenna and the hospice workers from Luminos Hospice for the care and compassion they provided.

Helen lived a remarkable 92 years filled with hard work, independence, adventure, family, friendship, music, dancing, and countless stories. She loved Cleveland, she loved her family, and she lived life in a way that was unmistakably her own.

Those who knew Helen will remember her strong spirit, her quick wit, her willingness to speak her mind, and the unmistakable personality that made her Helen.

Her family asks that she be remembered not simply as she was in her final years, but as she truly lived-with strength, humor, determination, and an abiding love for the people and places that mattered most to her.

Her memory will live on in the stories she told, the lives she touched, and most of all, in the family she loved so dearly.

Services will be held 2:00 pm, Friday, September 11, 2026 at the Chapman-Black Funeral Home Chapel. The burial will be held in Woodland Cemetery at a later date. Chapman-Black Funeral Home will be handling the arrangements. Friends and family may visit Helen's online guest book and memorial page at www.chapman-black.com.

In lieu of flowers, the family has asked that you donate to a charity of your choice.