January 26, 1929 - July 17, 2023
Wanda Pauline Plouch Miller Tallent was born Jan. 26, 1929, in Sand Springs, Oklahoma to Alfred Ira and Ella Mae (Applegate) Plouch, the eldest of their three children. She died on July 17 in Stroud at age 94.
After her parents divorced, Wanda lived with her Applegate family in Sand Springs until her mother remarried. Wanda was adopted by her stepfather, Leonard Miller, as a young teen and moved with the family to Colorado for a few months; but she primarily continued to live with the Applegate family. While in high school she met the love of her life, Bobby Gene Tallent, whom she married on June 1, 1947, after her graduation from Sand Springs High School. They lived in California and Oregon before returning to Tulsa and starting a family when their oldest son, James A., was born in 1951. They moved back to California where three more children were born: Rebecca J. in 1953, Philip P. in 1954 and Christopher D. in 1956. They returned to Sand Springs in 1958.
Wanda was a housewife for most of her life, working occasionally as a telephone operator early in her marriage and
later in a department stores in Sand Springs and Tulsa. She was active in the Tulsa County chapter of Beta Sigma Phi social sorority in the 1960s, until she and Gene returned to California in 1971.
On Gene’s retirement in 1995, they moved to Bristow where they lived outside of town until Gene’s death in 2006. Wanda continued living in Bristow and was active in the Bristow First Church of God. One of her proudest accomplishments was working with the Clothing Room, a mission project of the local church where families could find used clothing at reasonable prices. Money from the project supported mission projects. She also worked bean dinners at the church and provided pies and cakes at church meals, events and funerals.
An avid reader, Wanda also enjoyed word puzzles, needlework and gardening.
Wanda was preceded in death by Gene, her husband of 59 years; her great-grandson Desean Tallent; her brother, Vernon D. Plouch; sister Anabelle Plouch; and her beloved cousin, Opal Applegate Matthews.
She is survived by her children James A. (Debbie) of Okay; Dr. Rebecca Tallent (Roger Saunders) of Moscow, Idaho; Philip P. ( Jan) of Bristow; and Christopher D. (Kathy) of Cleveland. She is also survived by seven grandchildren, seven great-grandchildren, 11 great-great grandchildren and four greatgreat- great grandchildren. She is also survived by her sisterin- law Dorothy Plouch of Wichita, Kansas, 12 nieces and nephews and multiple greatnieces and nephews.
The memorial service for Wanda was held at 11 a.m., Saturday, July 22 at the First Church of God, Bristow.
The family thanks the staff at Stroud Health Care Center South for their care for Wanda in her final weeks.