Terri Lynn Evans
1959-2024
Terri Lynn Carlton Evans passed away, surrounded by loved ones, on Tuesday, February 13th, 2024, after a hard-fought, two-year battle with breast cancer. Terri was born February 17, 1959, in Durant, Oklahoma to Jerry & Pat Carlton. Raised in Chickasha, Oklahoma with her brother Craig, Terri graduated from Chickasha High School in 1977. Throughout her high school years, Terri was a cheerleader, class president and football homecoming queen. Terri attended Southwestern Oklahoma State University where she majored in Elementary Education. Upon graduation in 1981, she began her teaching career. She went on to teach elementary and middle school students at Del City Elementary, Summit Middle School, Whittier Middle School, John Ross Elementary, Mustang Horizon Intermediate School, Hefner Middle School, Justice Alma Wilson SeeWorth Academy, and Heartland Middle School. Terri influenced countless lives over the course of her forty plus year career. She was a lifelong advocate for kids and a true mentor and friend to her colleagues. Her impact will be felt for many years to come.
As much as she loved being a teacher, her greatest joy was being a mom to her three children, Brandi, Carli, & Tre, and SheShe to her three grandchildren, Dax, Dane, & Bradlee. They were truly the lights of her life. She was always their biggest cheerleader. More importantly, she always showed up. Whether it was sitting through the sweltering heat cheering on Brandi and her softball team, walking countless steps on the track to watch Carli outrun & outjump everyone, or traveling to basketball gyms near & far to watch Tre excel on the court, her kids always knew she would be there. She was the mom who made sure everyone had what they needed; she could be counted on to fix a hairbow, bring someone's forgotten shoes, and she always, always made sure that every one of her kids' teammates knew she was in their corner, too.
She loved beagles and Snoopy/Peanuts from the time she was a little girl to her passing. Although she loved football and softball-specifically OU, basketball was her favorite sport to watch. From watching her Dad as a coach to supporting Terry in his coaching career, she felt at home in a basketball gym. When she & Terry began their journey together in 1996, she loved supporting him and the players every step of the way. Whether high school or college, one of her favorite places to be was in the gym cheering on Terry & his teams.
Terri was a loving mother, grandmother, teacher, friend and mentor to so many. She is survived by her loving partner, Terry Evans, her daughter Brandi Brown and husband, Derek Brown, daughter Carli Wester, and son, Tre Evans. She was blessed to be "SheShe" to her three grandchildren, Dax, Dane and Bradlee Brown. She is also survived by her mother, Patricia Wharton, and brother, Craig Carlton along with a beloved aunt, Betty Miller, and numerous cousins. She was preceded in death by her father, Jerry Carlton, and her grandparents, Andy & Velma Trout and Russell & Thelma Watson.
The family would like to extend their sincere gratitude to the family & friends who supported and cared for Mom throughout her illness. We are particularly grateful to Alice Hearn, Laura Brown, and the principals, teachers & staff of Heartland & Cimarron Middle Schools for their unwavering support of Terri and her family every step of the way.
A celebration of her life will be held at 2pm, Saturday, February 17 th at Matthews Funeral Home in Edmond, Oklahoma. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Mercy Coletta Breast Center in her memory.
We will be live streaming this service. To watch the service CLICK HERE to go to our YouTube page. Click on 'Videos', then 'Live Streams'.