Pearl Nadine Contreras passed away peacefully at home on October 30, 2024, at the age of 91.  She was born at the foot of Braggs Mountain on December 25, 1932, to Harry and Billie McFarland. She attended and later graduated from Bagley High School in Tahlequah, Oklahoma.  She went by Nadine all her life and did not like being called Pearl.  She would tell the story that her mama named her after an old schoolteacher named Miss Pearl.  When anyone called her Pearl, she was quick to let them know that she did not like the name Pearl.

Nadine's life story is one that took her many places.  She met and married Eugene Gregory in 1951 and they had 7 children together.  Shortly after she married Eugene, they moved to Wichita Kansas.  where she worked for Kresses five and dime.  She later moved to Sapulpa Oklahoma where she spent 23 years working for Liberty Glass, and another 10 years working for the Sapulpa Elks Lodge   She was an incredibly dedicated hard-working woman all of her life.

In 1965, she met and married Dale Wortman.  They met while she was working for Liberty Glass.    The story goes that when Dale who we called Big Dale came to pick her up for their first date, she hid several of us kids, so he didn't see all 7 and quickly run out the door. Their marriage lasted until Big Dale's death in 1990.  She later married Dan Contreras, and they spent 21 years together until his death in 2013.

There are so many stories about this incredibly loving, kind woman.  It is hard to sum up 91 years of her life in just a few sentences.  She endured so many challenging and at times, very heartbreaking experiences in her life.  One thing is certain, no matter the circumstances, she always managed to pick herself up and keep going.   She also had a lot of good times in her life.  She loved dancing, horseback riding, gardening, reading, and she was a great cook.  She truly was a woman of strength; courage and she had a commonsense approach to all challenges that she faced during her lifetime.

She is survived by sisters, Leona Ann Heath, and Jane (Jerry) Reed of Wichita KS. Daughters Donna (Ed) Cole, Lisa (Dan) Kraft and Emma Sherry, all of Sapulpa Oklahoma. Grandchildren, Jason Smith, Jo Dawn Harris, David White, Ricky Sandall Jr (Trish), Savannah Sherry-Franklin (Todd), Sophia (Josh) Swift, step grandchildren, Elisha Contreras, Russell Wortman, David Bristow, Miranda Garrison and Eric Cole, numerous great and great-great grandchildren.

She is preceded in death by her parents Harry and Billie McFarland, husband, Dan Contreras, sisters, Jessie Blase, Nora Mae Moore, Charlotte Anderson, Dolly Bernice Gregory, children Larry Dale Gregory, Kenneth Gregory, Terry Gregory, David Gregory, Vera White and stepchildren, Dale Allen Wortman, Jimmy Wortman, Elaine Bristow and Terry Contreras.

She will be sadly missed by a host of family and friends and fondly remembered by all her who knew her.

In keeping of the Cherokee tradition, We are not saying goodbye…..We are only saying until we meet again

Graveside services were held at 10am, Friday, November 1, 2024, at Green Hill Memorial Gardens.

Arrangements are under the direction of Traditions Funeral Home in Kellyville.