Stillwater, Oklahoma - Cheryl Deanna Armstrong, beloved wife, mother, teacher, and advocate, was welcomed into her heavenly home on September 11, 2025, at the age of 84 years old. She passed peacefully with her devoted husband, Ivan Armstrong, by her side. Viewing and visitation will be Thursday, September 18, 2025 from 6:00pm to 8:00pm at Strode Funeral Home. A celebration of Deanna's life will be held 10:00am Friday, September 19, 2025 at Southside Baptist Church in Stillwater, with arrangements entrusted to Strode Funeral Home and Cremation.

Born to Dan and Bernice Richardson, Deanna was raised in a home where faith, family, and education were cherished. Her parents instilled in her a love of learning, determination, and self-confidence, qualities that became hallmarks of her life and ministry.

On March 5, 1957, she married her high school sweetheart, Ivan. Together they raised three children, Denis, Cindy, and Tony, building a family rooted in love, resilience, and faith. Though she often joked about her limited love for cooking, Deanna's true gift was creating a welcoming home filled with beauty, joy, and gatherings that drew family and friends together.

Faith was the foundation of Deanna's life. She was a kind, but straight forward woman. Through life's challenges she would redirect family and friends to what mattered most - God. She embodied the ethos of Colossians 3:1-2, "So if you're serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don't shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up and be alert to what is going on around Christ - that's where the action is. See things from his perspective." Colossians 3:1-2 MSG

For six decades, Deanna was a faithful member of Southside Baptist Church. She poured her energy into teaching pre-K Sunday School, guiding young girls through the Girls Auxiliary, leading Vacation Bible School, and serving in the Women's Missionary Union. Her service reflected her deep love for Christ and her passion for nurturing the next generation.

Deanna embraced life with a sense of adventure and love of travel. She loved family trips to Jamaica and Australia and road-tripping across the U.S. and taking trips with her sisters and dearest friend Mary Sue.

Her advocacy became a defining part of her legacy. When her daughter Cynthia was born with Down syndrome, Deanna and Ivan refused to accept the limitations society placed on children with disabilities. Instead, they became pioneers in Stillwater, rallying families, petitioning the school board, and helping launch special education programs, as well as the Stillwater Sheltered Workshop and Group Home system. Their vision reshaped the community, ensuring dignity, education, and opportunity for generations of children.

She was also dedicated to her community through the Payne County Home Community Education Rising Star group where she was a member and held leadership roles for many years.

Professionally, Deanna dedicated nearly 30 years as the Financial Secretary at Stillwater High School, where she was affectionately known as "Queen." Her years there brought lifelong friendships, especially with her closest companions, Mary Sue Butler and Mary Merritt.

After retiring in 2004, Deanna and Ivan answered God's call to serve as missionaries in Kenya with Builders for Children, a program of Feed the Children. From 2005 to 2007, they partnered with the World Food Bank and Nairobi City Education Department to provide meals for more than 90,000 children daily through the Slum Schools Feeding Program. Deanna and Ivan were based at the Dagoretti Children's Center where Deanna mentored staff, taught Sunday School, volunteered in the abandoned baby center, and became a "grandmother" to countless children offering love and stability to those most in need.

She was preceded in death by her parents; siblings Ina Jean McQueen, Alpha Mae Young, Wanna Fay Richardson Williams, Willard Richardson, and Victor

Richardson; children Denis and Cynthia Armstrong; and grandson Aaron Armstrong.

She is survived by her loving husband, Ivan; her son Tony and his wife Jane; her grandchildren

Amanda, Andrew, Rose, and Lillian Armstrong. She also leaves behind many nieces, nephews,

friends, and church family who will carry her memory forward with gratitude.

In lieu of customary remembrances, memorial contributions may be made to Southside Baptist

Church or the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering (International Mission Board).