- Date Of Birth: March 3, 1952
- Date Of Death: January 17, 2022
- State: Oklahoma
Houston, we have a problem!
Darla Karen Weese Schmidt Hamilton was born on March 3, 1952, to Theodore Edwin Weese and Genevieve Weese Sadler. She was raised in Wichita Falls, Texas and in high school moved to Enid, Oklahoma where she met and married Bill Schmidt. They lived for a stint in Indiana and returned to Oklahoma. She has three kids Mindy, Peter, and Bill, who she is insanely proud of.
After a long time of dating, she and Mike Hamilton married and began an adventurous life together. They have been married 22 years and he is her friend, her love, her partner and travel buddy. He loved her deeply and worked hard to provide the best life for them.
Preceded in death by her parents, stepfather Leo Sadler, brothers Mike and Johnny, and her loving animals, Jax, Jasper, and Bubba. She leaves behind several family members whom she loved very much.
She has eight wonderful grandkids Nathen, Conner, Karlie, Hadley, Billy, Ian, Eli, and Miles. She loved each of them dearly and was wildly proud of them all. She looked forward to seeing all of them succeed and accomplish each of their life goals.
She leaves behind her sister Teri Sadler Hansford of Trinidad Colorado, brother David Sadler of Wichita Falls, Texas, nephew Seth Bryant and his daughters of Colorado, Christopher Hill of Edmond, Oklahoma and Maggie Schmidt of Norman, Oklahoma.
She loved and accepted Emily Hindman as her own daughter, sister, best friend, and confidant for 25 years. They had an irreplaceable bond like no other that only comes along once in a lifetime.
She has extended family who love her like their own sister, aunt, cousin, and friend.
Darla fought rheumatoid arthritis daily for nearly 40 years. Through grit and determination, she kept moving forward. Not only did she make raising her kids a top priority, she was determined to make the best life for them. She completed her bachelor’s degree in 1997 and went on to obtain a master’s degree in counseling from the University of Oklahoma-Boomer Sooner!
Darla gave back through serving her community. She ran an insurance company and worked as a licensed professional counselor providing mental health services to her community for years. She served many people through the Medicaid program, went on to conduct a DUI school and provided court ordered substance abuse assessments. Her work also included providing psychometric testing for special education services throughout several public schools, including Paoli and Chickasha.
Darla loved to travel, most of all to the Rocky Mountains, go on road trips, read, and generally, just wander. She was independent, sarcastic to no end, fiercely determined, and enjoyed the simpler things in life. If someone needed help, she helped them, if she learned something, she taught others, if she was thankful, she showed it, and if she loved you, she told you.
When you ask people about her, their first instinct is to smile. Darla would encourage us to be the things we loved most about the people who are gone and to have fun. She really was something else.
She was uniquely funny, kind, humble, and strong. She was no nonsense about things, ready to offer a friendly perspective to those she cared the most about.
What a life she had. She was able to touch so many people’s lives in immense ways. What a great friend. We love you Dar. Rest well.
