Mary Lou Rook's Obituary
Obituary – Mary Lou Rook
Mary Lou (McLaird) Rook 90, peacefully passed away on Saturday afternoon, May 16, 2026. She was blessed to have lived a long and happy life.
She was born in Overbrook, Oklahoma on October 11, 1935, to Zela Mae Davis McLaird and William Bell McLaird. A child of the Great Depression, and the youngest of five, she lived for a time in the Arbuckle Mountains of southern Oklahoma, and later moved to Ardmore. She cherished her Oklahoma heritage.
She is preceded in death by her husband of 47 years, Walter Duane “W.D.” Rook. Mary Lou and Duane were introduced to each other on a blind date by Dr. Robert Bishop for whom she worked for many years as nurse and assistant. Together they raised four girls in a blended family of his two daughters, Linder Orourke and Catherine Lugo; her daughter Donna Sheikh-Houssein; and their daughter together, Patty Hulen.
While working for Dr. Bishop, Mary Lou studied the sciences at El Centro College in Dallas and earned an associate’s degree. She later joined his company, Rook Electric Service, Inc., a long established commercial and residential firm in Dallas where she decided to pursue the field of Master Electrician and became one of the first women in Dallas to earn this distinction. She specialized in landscape lighting design and interior lighting and worked in many homes and businesses in the Dallas area until they closed their business in 2002.
She was an accomplished painter of birds and nature which were two of her favorite things. Mary Lou was a proud member of the Daughters Of The American Revolution. She played the piano, sang soprano in the church choir, collected folk art, and was an outstanding home chef. She is fondly remembered as a great storyteller by everyone who knew her.
She is survived by her daughters, Patty Hulen and husband, Mitch, Donna Sheikh-Houssein, Linder Orourke, Catherine Lugo and husband, Bruce; three grandchildren: Justin Hulen, Arnena Sheikh-Houssein, and Mathew Smith; and four great-grandchildren: Lucas Hulen, Evan Smith, Anne Marie Smith, and Liam Smith.
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