Audine Balman

July 25, 1923 – February 26th, 2025

“Audine” Balman, a beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother passed away peacefully at her home the morning of February 26th, 2025. She was 101 and a half years old (as she would say) having lived independently for over a century with strength, grace, and resilience.

Born on July 25, 1923, to Edna Sumner Banks and Rudolph Alvin Banks, Audine spent most of her life in Kansas, attending Frazier and Oil Hill grade schools before graduating from El Dorado High School in 1941. She furthered her education at Butler County Junior College in 1943.

An early marriage blessed Audine with her first daughter, and on May 18, 1951, she married James Harvey Balman. Together, they built a loving home, welcoming a second daughter and creating a family filled with many experiences and cherished memories.

Audine was a woman of deep faith and commitment to her community. She was a life member of the Social Order of the Beauceant, a dedicated member of the Eastern Star, and actively participated in Life Enrichment at Butler County Community College and Home Extension. Her working years included time in gift and bookstores, as well as employment at Boeing, a shared legacy within her family. However, she was most proud of the years she spent as a bank teller, a role she loved and spoke of often.

She was a devoted member of First United Methodist Church of El Dorado, Kansas, and later, Lost Creek United Methodist Church in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Her faith and kindness touched the lives of many.

Beyond her community and faith, Audine had a love for country music, especially Alan Jackson. She was an avid NASCAR fan and never missed an opportunity to cheer on Oklahoma State football. These passions brought her great joy and many cherished memories with family and friends. She also had a deep admiration for lions, drawn to their strength and beauty, and treasured rubies, her birthstone, which she proudly wore as a symbol of her July birthday.

Audine is survived by her daughters, Shelley Rued Word (Pike) of Edmond, OK, and Barbara Catherine Froese of Stillwater, OK; her grandchildren, Cari Fischer (Danny) and Casey Froese, both of Stillwater; her great-grandchildren, Julianne Reents of Perry, OK, Megan Reents, Laci Reents, and Ethan Fischer, all of Stillwater, and Gabriel Gonzales of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico; and her special friends, Dania Crawford and Emma Moorman.

The family would like to extend a special thank you to Traditions Health Hospice of Chandler, Ok. and Project Heart of Stillwater, OK, for their compassionate care and support.

Her legacy of love, strength, and faith will live on in the hearts of all who knew her. A celebration of her life will be held at Lost Creek United Methodist Church, Stillwater, Ok. On March 14th at 10:30am. She will be interred at Sunset Lawns Cemetery in El Dorado, Kansas on March 19th at 11:30am, reunited with her beloved family in the place she called home.

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