August 7, 1939 ~ September 19, 2024
Velma, OK
Sylvia England Mitchell was born Sylvia Earline McMurtry on August 7, 1939, to William Walter (Jim) and Cornelia Elizabeth (Nelia) McMurtry at their family farm on East Mud Creek in the Harrisburg community. She passed away after a short illness on September 19, 2024, at the age of 85. Funeral services will be Tuesday, September 24 at 10:00 am at First Baptist Church in Duncan. Burial will be at the New Velma Cemetery. Visitation will be on Monday, September 23 from 5:00 to 7:00 pm at Whitt Funeral Home.
Sylvia graduated from Velma Alma High School with the Class of 1957. On December 23, 1959, she married Howard (Rusty) England and they shared 46 years together before he died in 2006. She and Rusty had two children, Rusty England, Jr. and Kathy Ann Palacol.
Sylvia worked for 28 years as the bookkeeper for Stockman’s Supply Farm Store. After retirement, she was a community volunteer and leader in many organizations including Velma Senior Citizens, Stephens County Audubon Society, Owl Club, Harrisburg Ladies, Amoco Credit Union, Endurance Federal Credit Union, and Duncan Regional Hospital Auxiliary volunteering 1,972 hours over five years.
Sylvia was a true Proverbs 31 woman, generous and sacrificial. She was a great cook and homemaker. She could sew an entire outfit or hem or patch anything you asked her to. She was a formidable opponent in dominoes, bridge, and Liverpool rummy. She taught us manners and many life lessons. Sylvia loved flowers, nature, and feeding and watching the wild birds. She helped anyone interested to identify and name all the bird species.
Sylvia lived her faith daily pointing toward the true hope of Jesus Christ. She knew the importance of raising her children in church. She taught 2nd grade Sunday School at Immanuel Baptist for many years and most recently was a member of First Baptist Church. She thought of both of these congregations as her church family, especially her Sunday School classes.
In 2018, God blessed her with a new season of life at the Velma All-School reunion when she reconnected with her high school sweetheart, Bob (Hershell) Mitchell. They were married December 4, 2018, and shared the past six years together. Bob passed away from a brief illness on the same day, just six hours after Sylvia did.
Sylvia is survived by one sister, Anna Speed and husband, Art of Berryhill; her son, Rusty England and wife, Jana; her daughter, Kathy Palacol and husband, Ernest, all of Duncan; grandchildren: Sally and JJ Grantham of Tulsa, Trey and Kindra Palacol of Washington, Katie and Chris Atchley of Duncan, Clint and Shauna Palacol of Comanche, Maggie and Drew Vincent of Mustang, and Kyle Palacol of Duncan. Other survivors include 15 great-grandchildren: Riggs, Gavan and Abel Grantham, Kai and Maika Palacol, Keller, Canon and Maggie Jane Atchley, Emma, Kalai, Maddox and Gabriel Palacol, Reagan, Georgia, and Charlotte Vincent; as well as numerous adoring nieces, nephews, and families. She was preceded in death by her parents; her late husband, Rusty England; his immediate family; a brother and sister-in-law, James and Marylyn McMurtry; an older sister, Mary Kathryn McMurtry; and a nephew, Dennis Speed.
