Loyd Stout

Phone:  580-596-2002 ― Fax:  580-596-2121Loyd Thomas Stout was born on September 2, 1923 to Harry O. Stout and Lydia Elliot Stout on a farm in Alfalfa County northwest of Lambert.  He passed away at the Kiowa Hospital District Manor on June 9, 2022 at the age of 98.5 years of age.  He was the youngest son.

He attended and graduated from Lambert School in 1941.  His graduation class was the largest class to ever graduate from Lambert High School with 21 students.  Loyd then enrolled in Northwestern State Teachers College in Alva.  During his time in college, World War II began and not long after, a fresh faced 20 year old Lambert lad reported for duty to Sheepshead Bay, New York for training.  Loyd and his three older brothers, Willard, Noble, and Fay would be among the 16.1 million active service men during the war.

He joined the Merchant Marines with his lifelong friend, A.B. Cochran.  They were together on numerous dangerous trips across both the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean carrying World War II supply cargo.  Many ships in the large convoys were sunk by submarines and aircraft at sea and large cannons high in the mountains as the ships approached land.  After the war ended, Loyd stayed in the service until 1946.  He spent a large portion of the time on a ship running deliveries in South America.  He also started working at Boeing in Wichita, Kansas.  During his time there he had moved up the ladder to Manager.  He also played on a semi-pro basketball team while at Boeing and was recruited by Phillips 66.  He played against many who were as great as him.  Following his discharge from service, Loyd returned to NWOSU where he played one year of football for Earl Crowder (father of Stanley Crowder) while finishing his teaching degree.  Loyd also played four years of baseball and five years of basketball due to gas rations.

In the 1950’s he started playing for a minor baseball league known as Sooner State League of Ardmore.  He played for Amarillo, Pampa, and Ardmore teams.  He even played against Whitey Herzog, the manager and coach of the St. Louis Cardinals.  It was during this time, that his friend, Larry Sanchez from NWOSU, joined Loyd in playing in the minor baseball league.

After graduation, Stout took his first teaching job at Byron-Driftwood School while in the baseball playoffs and missed the first three weeks of school.  While he was at Byron-Driftwood Schools, he coached baseball, volleyball, basketball and tennis (boys and girls) teams.  Lynn Puffinbarger was one of his friends who helped run the school until he got there from playing in the minor league tournament.  He was Superintendent of the school and was at Byron-Driftwood for seventeen years, until the school was closed.  Paul LaBrue played basketball for Stout and went on to play in a Division I College.  Loyd married Martha Coppock on December 29, 1955 in Oklahoma City during the All College Basketball Tournament.

In 1954 Loyd played semi-pro baseball with the Cherokee Team.  In 1950 his team won third place at the National Baseball Congress of America.  Quinton (grandson) played in 2013 at the National Baseball Congress of America and placed fourth, decades later.

In 1968 he joined the Cherokee Schools as girls basketball coach, taught Driver’s Ed and Health and P.E. classes, was assistant football coach and Jr. High Principal.  He retired in 1982.

Loyd was inducted into the Oklahoma Girls Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame in 1983.  His record at Byron-Driftwood was 246 wins and 156 losses for the boys teams, and 208 wins and 161 losses for the girls.  At Cherokee, his girls teams had 205 wins and 124 losses.  He has made a valuable contribution to high school athletics in Oklahoma.

Loyd was inducted into the NWOSU Sports Hall of Fame in 1993 and two years later Paula was inducted.  They were the first father and daughter to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

He was an avid sports fan traveling to watch the Cherokee Chiefs play basketball during the season.  He would attend District, Regional, Area and State Basketball Tournaments.  He had his favorite spot at the Big House where he watched lots of games.  Loyd and Martha were honored at one of the state basketball tournaments for attending the games for 50 years.

Loyd enjoyed watching Paula and Gayle play college basketball.  He also enjoyed watching his grandchildren play baseball, football, basketball, and volleyball.  He was very proud of them and tried to attend as much as his health allowed.  His last game was in November 2021 when he drove himself to watch Morgan play volleyball at Wichita State.  Loyd was a gentleman, very humble, and a real likeable person.  Just about anywhere he went, someone would say, “There is Loyd or Coach Stout.”  Roy Rogers would say, “He never met a man that he didn’t like.”  Loyd Stout fit this to a T.

He loved visiting with anyone whether it was at the Sonic/Subway area, post office, restaurant, ball games, etc.  He attended the Cherokee Friends Church his whole life.

Loyd is preceded in death by his wife of 55 years, Martha; his parents; brothers and sisters-in-law, Willard (Evelyn), Noble (Eva Mae), Fay (Ruth); his sister and brother-in-law, Ina Murphy (Clifford); Jack Elliot and Nellie Bonham who were raised by Loyd’s parents; a nephew, James Stout, and a niece, Janice Elliott.

He is survived by his son, Mickey Stout and wife, Amanda of South Hutchinson City, Kansas; daughters, Paula Crandall and husband, Steve of Lyons, Kansas and Gayle Stout of Oklahoma City.  His grandchildren are Clayton Crandall and wife, Taylor of Concordia, Kansas, Quintin and Cameron Crandall of Lyons, Kansas, Morgan and Logan Stout of Hutchinson, Kansas.  He is getting a great granddaughter (Clayton and Taylor) in July.  He has a sister-in-law, Wanda Elliott of Lawrence, Kansas; many nieces and nephews plus many close and dear friends.

Service for Loyd will be Saturday, June 18, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. at the Cherokee High School Auditorium.  Burial will be in Cherokee Municipal Cemetery with arrangements by Lanman Funeral Home, Inc. of Cherokee.  Visitation will be Friday, June 17, 2022 from 10:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. with family present 5:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m.  www.lanmanmemorials.com  Facebook: Lanman Funeral Home Inc.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made in Loyd’s name to Cherokee High School Athletes or NWOSU Women’s Basketball or Baseball Programs through the funeral home.