Mabel E. McLaughlin

Mabel E. McLaughlin

July 27, 1927 - Jan. 7, 2013

OBERLIN, Kansas -- Mabel was born in Hitchcock County, Nebraska, on July 27, 1927, and died in Vacaville, California, on Jan. 7, 2013.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Omar and Maudie Brown; brothers, Morton (Marie, Jeannie), Elmore (Jeannie), Kenneth (Marjorie, Sara), Harold (Gloria, Carol, Josephine); sisters, Frieda (Fred), Lucille (Howard, Vernon, Limon), Florence (Clayton), Mildred (Jack), Maxine (Tom), and Lila; and the father of her two sons, Robert McLaughlin.

Mabel is survived by two sons; Michael McLaughlin (John Wieland) of Vacaville, California, George McLaughlin of New York, New York ; two grandsons, Riley Roberts and Zachary Roberts of Reno, Nevada; and one brother-in-law, Dale Peterson (Lila).

Mabel served in the US Navy in the early 1950s (even though she couldn't swim and suffered from sea sickness during her only non-land based deployment). In the 1960s she was active in the Decatur County Saddle Club and loved to go horseback riding on the weekends. She loved playing fast pitch softball until an errant slide into home plate damaged one of her knees. Later in life she enjoyed seeing the world and traveled to Hong Kong, Ireland, Alaska, Honduras, Australia, Japan, and France.

One of Mabel's early jobs was as a schoolteacher at the rural schoolhouse that is now part of the Decatur County Museum. She is probably best remembered for the more than 30 years she worked at the Oberlin Medical Clinic as numerous doctors came and went: Nelson, Bickford, Whittaker, May, Palmer and many more. After her retirement from the clinic she continued to live in Oberlin for several years before moving to Sturgeon, Missouri. where she was active in the local Seventh-day Adventist Church. Mabel also volunteered weekly at the local community center and spent many hours sorting donated clothing to be sold or repurposed.

Two years before her death, she had a major stroke while vacationing in Maui. Thanks to state of the art medical care there, she had complete recovery. However, during her stroke treatment it was found that she had lung cancer. She bravely went through several courses of chemo and radiation at UC Davis. Once it was determined that her cancer diagnosis was terminal, she relocated from Missouri to California to be closer to her sons and grandsons.

To the end she retained her simple faith in God and her pleasant, even humorous attitude. Her wishes were for cremation then internment in the Oberlin Cemetery.

A graveside memorial service will be on Saturday, April 27, 2013, in the Oberlin Cemetery, Oberlin, Kansas, with Rev. Nancy Proffitt officiating. The family suggests memorial contributions be given in her memory to the Decatur County Museum.

Pauls Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.