LaNell Switzer Obituary

Reunited in Heaven today. ❤

LaNell DeBusk Switzer

May 26, 1936 – September 16, 2023

A formidable woman, LaNell Switzer, age 87, passed away peacefully at The Veraden Senior Living Center on Saturday, September 16, 2023.  A widow for the past four years, she was ready to be reunited in heaven with Kenneth, her beloved husband of 65 years.

LaNell DeBusk was born on May 26, 1936, in Cross Plains, Texas, the youngest of three children.  She married the love of her life, Kenneth Switzer, on February 17, 1953.  Together, they raised daughters LaJo O’Brien and Maxine Muecke.  They also helped to parent several nieces and nephews who affectionately know her as “Aunt Dang,” including Bryce, Bill, Tonya, and Audie DeBusk, along with David Wilkinson and Gene Fenton.  LaNell was a strong-willed and loving mother who made the best of difficult financial circumstances and was especially generous with her time, energy, and resources.

Throughout her life, LaNell commanded respect and admiration, living with resilient energy, sharp wit, and a great sense of humor.  A successful businesswoman, she was employed for many years as a National Director for Royal Neighbors of America, a leader in the fraternal insurance industry.  LaNell served as a professional speaker and an award-winning financial writer whose work was published internationally.  As Chairman of the RNA Board, she generously took her children and grandchildren along on several amazing trips where they created great memories, including Las Vegas, San Diego, Daytona Beach, and Hawaii!  

In her personal and professional relationships, she boldly modeled the value of hard work, creativity, and personal responsibility.  Also going by the name of “Babaw,” LaNell and Kenneth often babysat their four beloved grandchildren:  Lindsey Muecke, Rachael Parrish, Dr. Blake O’Brien, and Emily Schoolcraft.  In her retirement years, she has enjoyed spending time with her prized great-grandchildren: Triston, Carter, Jace, and Kyndal Parrish.  She moved on to heaven before meeting Asher Kenneth Schoolcraft, another great-grandson on the way, but she loved him already and was delighted and honored to hear his middle name.

An entertaining storyteller with a fascinating life, LaNell was one of a kind - feisty, adventurous, and tenacious.  With the heart of a fighter, she survived over 17 surgeries, a stroke, breast cancer and a double mastectomy, a rattlesnake bite, and getting run over by Kenneth… a memorable accident that eventually became a legendary family joke.  LaNell was a natural leader who enjoyed time with her family, traveling the country, going dancing with her husband, decorating sugar cookies with her grandkids, working with good friends at Virginia’s Café, and sitting at the “Mean Girls Table” with her friends at The Veraden.

Although LaNell has now gone home to be with Jesus, she will not be forgotten here. She helped to shape and influence many lives, and she will be missed and remembered affectionately by her surviving children, nieces and nephews, grandchildren, great grandchildren, and close friends.

The Memorial Service for LaNell Switzer is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, September 26, 2023.  It will be held at The Veraden Senior Living Center, 2709 E. Danforth Road, Edmond, OK, 73034.

*Mom and I always spell it "Babah," but the other grandkids spell it "Babaw," and I think people are more likely to pronounce it correctly that way, so I went with that spelling here, but she'll always be "Babah" to me. =).  This is my first draft of the Obituary written tonight.  I'll make edits as requested, but I wanted to post it here on the actual day.  I will write a more personal update with details from this week sometime tomorrow. ❤