Marie Frances Walker Bush

Funeral services for Marie Frances Walker Bush will be held on Saturday, January 26 at 12:00 p.m. at The Clearview Community Center.

Marie Frances Walker Bush was born on December 7, 1940, in Weleetka, Oklahoma to Ollie and Kathryn Carnell Walker and was the oldest of ten children. She married Frank Wesley Bush Sr. She had two children and two grandchildren.

She attended Clearview Public Schools and graduated in 1958. Marie attended Langston University for two years and started working at Weleetka Hospital. While working at the hospital, she started attending nursing school in 1974. She completed her degree and began working at Okfuskee County Hospital. After working at this hospital, she attended East Central University in Ada three days a week and graduated with a B.A. Degree in Sociology and Rehabilitation. Marie continued her education, and in 1997, she graduated with a degree in Education of Religion from Bacone College in Muskogee.

Marie worked for the State Institution for Boys in Boley, Oklahoma for several years as a Juvenile Counselor. When the institution was turned into a state prison, Marie went into training to work in the prison. She took courses in Social Behavior and Counseling. Later, she was promoted to Sergeant. In the 1980’s, Marie began writing articles for the Clearview News Section of the Weleetkan newspaper. This section provided people who had moved from Clearview and others, who received the Weleetkan, to stay in touch with the news in Clearview.

In 1980, she was elected as Mayor of Clearview. She also re-incorporated the Town of Clearview. Marie was mayor of Clearview for eighteen years and the first black female mayor of Clearview. Being a person that believed in making a contribution to the community, Marie helped make the Town of Clearview one of the historical black towns in Oklahoma.

While mayor, Marie used the school gym, which is now the Clearview Community Center, to hold the town meetings. She later received grants to have a community building built and most of the streets paved. The Community Center is used for family reunions, funerals, family parties, school reunions, and other events. The Community Building is now where the town meetings are held. It is also used for parties, family reunions, church events, and other events.

In 1980, the Alford family organized an all Black Rodeo. It was the start of something big for Clearview. And now, Clearview Rodeo is the third largest Black Rodeo in Oklahoma. Ms. Bush has also assisted with publicity activities for the rodeo since the beginning. Ms. Bush has served on numerous boards. She served on the Ladies Industrial Club, Ladies Auxiliary Club, Veteran’s Ladies Club, Ladies Beautification Club, C.H.A.R.M.E.D., and the Clearview Community Improvement Corporation (CCIC) Organization. She was president of the Clearview Cemetery Board.

Ms. Bush was also a member of many clubs and organizations like the NAACP, Oklahoma and National Conference of Black Mayors, Southern Poverty Law Center, AARP Organization and Clearview School Alumni. She was also a member of the Church of the Living God and served as deaconess, superintendent, secretary, and church clerk. She was also president of the Mission Church Program.

Marie was called home on January 13, 2019. She was preceded in death by her parents, Ollie Leonard Walker Jr. and Kathryn Carnell Walker; husband, Frank Wesley Bush; two brothers, Ralph and George; five sisters, Thelma, Jean Esther, Marvie, Eva Mae, and Vinita Jo; five step children, Harriet Bush, James Bush, Glen Dale Bush, Elwood Bush, and Frank Wesley Bush Jr.

She leaves to cherish her memory: her sister, Eunice (Rundell) Edison of Lawton, Oklahoma; her brother, Billy Ray Walker of Clearview, Oklahoma; her daughter, Jackie (Glenn) Street of Seminole, Oklahoma; her son, Ronald aka “Chris” Bush of Clearview, Oklahoma; two grandchildren, Theran (Markeveric) Hernandez of Seminole, Oklahoma, Royce (Brook) Street of Maud, Oklahoma. 8 grandchildren, Reese, Vcake, Braxton, Akeya, Amerikus, Koi, John, Averi; her stepson, Peter (Helen) Bush of Clearview, Oklahoma; four step daughter-in-laws, Ceanly Bush, Dorothy Bush, Patricia Bush, and Jerlene Bush; numerous step grandchildren, step great grandchildren and step great great grandchildren, and a host of nephews, nieces, cousins, and many others that she adored.

Interment will be held at Clearview Cemetery in Clearview, Oklahoma under the direction of Biglow Funeral Directors of Okmulgee, Oklahoma.

A viewing will be held at the Church of the Living God, Temple #99, in Clearview, Oklahoma on Friday, January 25 from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.