Name: Leon Hicks

Date: August 31, 1937 - February 24, 2018

Biography: Leon Cordell Hicks was a talented man who used his God-given gifts to brighten the path of life. Dashing, engaging, and always ready with a quick and charming smile, he used the tools available to him and made the most out of life. Leon was part of The Hicks Family, well-known across Okfuskee County as the tall, smart, handsome and eager young people, ready to make their way in the world. He was born in Clearview, Oklahoma as the tenth of fourteen children within the 1918 union of Chester Arthur Hicks and Jessie Mae Hunt Hicks. He attended Rock Creek Elementary School in Clearview, then moved with the family to Bearden, later graduating from Boley High School. Anyone who knew Leon quickly learned he had a passion for two things: the joy of a new adventure and telling remarkable stories. He also loved to travel and spent time after high school with his older brothers and sister Mary Louise in Niles, Michigan. Leon joined the United States Army in 1960, serving his country for two-years of duty in Germany. He returned to Oklahoma City, honorable discharge in hand, and happily reunited with his beloved mother and extended family. Leon’s career was a testimony to his courage in shaping a path. He knew his mind and applied his skills, creativity, work-ethic and grit to push boundaries. Eager to be on the cutting edge, he followed in his brother Wilmer’s footsteps and worked for Lee Way Motor Freight among the first African American machinists in the city. Soon thereafter he found his true passion: sales! Leon took command of the powerful skills of communication and connecting with people and built a successful career. It was said that his silver-tongue could convince an Eskimo to buy ice! In the early 1980s, he courageously opened one of the first African American owned insurance agencies in Oklahoma City, running his business for many years before transitioning to successfully selling cars. Leon’s quick smile and warm eyes, combined with his learned and innate skills, were a perfect match for that competitive world. That environment allowed him to pull together all his gifts, spending his days talking, telling jokes and stories, closing deals and helping others, all while earning recognition and awards. Leon married Tycene Pyrtle in 1964 and they lived happily together in Oklahoma City for many years before amicably parting ways. Leon loved his extended family which spread from Oklahoma to California. He had a special fondness for the first generation of his 38 nieces and nephews, who would follow him around as if he were the pied piper, eager to hear a joke or story from the ‘olden days’. He loved the excitement of a challenging game of checkers or dominoes, and relished nothing more than a competitor who could be as boastful and outrageous as he could be, which he always found amongst the Hicks’ brothers! Leon was a member of Emmanuel Baptist Church and often sought ways to be kind and cheerful among others. He was a generous man, loving, affable, fun-loving, charismatic and filled with life. If he could help you, he would do so happily. These gifts, along with his infinite love and devotion to family and friends, made him a champion within our hearts. He touched our lives deeply and was a blessing. Leon is survived by his sister, Bernice Hicks Lenoir of Oklahoma City, a brother, John LaRue Hicks of Edmond, and three generations of nieces and nephews. Preceding him in death are his parents, Chester Arthur Hicks (1885-1955) and Jessie Mae Hunt Hicks (1900-1991), and eleven siblings: Jess Douglass (1920-1933); Mary Louise Hicks Brown (1921-2004); Eula Mae (1923-1931); Thelma Louise Hicks Jones (1925-2008), Lowell Allen (1926-1943); Alfred Earnest (1928-1991); Charles Wesley (1930); Wilmer Leonard (1931-2011); Gilbert Ray (1933-1996); Louis Henry (1939-1997), and Barbara Ann Hicks Wade (1942 – 2012).

Services: Memorial Service at Earl M. Temple Memorial Chapel, 2801 N. Kelley Avenue, Oklahoma City, OK 73111

Services date and time: 12pm Friday, March 2, 2018