Louis ‘Luke’ Bobby Kannady
Louis “Luke” Bobby Kannady stepped into glory peacefully Friday, Feb. 21, 2025, surrounded by his loving family at Mercy Hospital in Oklahoma City.
The oldest of three siblings, Luke was born Jan. 16, 1938, to Louis (Luke) V. and Wilma E. Kannady in Stapp/Zoe, Okla.
Luke was always proud of his birthplace in LeFlore County and of the values of faith, hard work, love of the outdoors and the importance of family and friends instilled in him from an early age.
Those values and Luke’s fond memories of his humble beginnings in Southeastern Oklahoma continued to impact Luke and to shape him into the person he was.
Luke attended the Stapp/ Zoe one-room schoolhouse through the eighth grade and graduated from Heavener High School in Heavener in 1955.
When asked about his school days and those that had the greatest influence on him, Luke would often speak of Reeder Thorton, his FFA teacher. Mr. Thorton’s investment and mentorship during Luke’s formative years provided confidence and timeless core values that served Luke well as FFA president and throughout his entire life.
Following graduation at age 17, Luke left his beloved town of Zoe and moved to Tulsa due to the scarcity of work in the area. Despite the distance, Luke maintained close friendships with his childhood friends, demonstrating true friendship which he would continue to exhibit throughout his life.
In Tulsa, Luke found a home with another individual who helped shape the wonderful man that he would become, his beloved “Aunt Punk” (Ada Martin).
Ada helped Luke acquire a job in the Texaco mail room. Before long, his new employer noticed his hardworking and driven nature and decided to invest in his potential with a transfer to Salem, Ill., where Luke worked in the clerk’s office in their newly developed field.
In hindsight, this was one of the many times our family came to understand God’s hand in Luke’s life, for in May 1957 in Salem, Luke met the love of his life, Ms. Alberta (Bert) Thalman.
After a brief three-month courtship, Luke and Bert were married on July 31, 1959, and thus began a love story, blessed by God, that would last for a remarkable 65 years.
Upon this union, Luke and Bert began their family, a family that included Angela Jones, Bert’s first daughter, whose father had passed from cancer.
The next year, God blessed Luke and Bert with a daughter, Schrie Kannady Braden, born June 22, 1960, in Salem, quickly followed by a son, Greg Kannady, born April 28, 1961, in Fairfax, Okla.
As Luke’s family grew, so too did his career.
Texaco recognized Luke’s attention to detail and utilized his skills in accounting and accounts payable by sending Luke to the areas of greatest need to oversee spending.
Luke’s career with Texaco took him from Tulsa to Salem to Fairfax to Ardmore and finally to Kingfisher in 1966. Luke remained employed with Texaco in Kingfisher until, once more, his Lord stepped into his family’s life.
In late 1980, Luke received a call from his son, Greg, who was attending Oklahoma State University at the time.
Greg shared with his dad that in seeking God’s will for his life, he felt called to start a tank truck business working with the people he loved in the oil and gas industry.
It’s important to note that Luke’s life was defined by his faith, not only his faith in the Lord, but also in the people he loved.
With a faith that often defied logic, Luke told his son, “If this is what the Lord is laying on your heart, come home.”
Thus, LuGreg Trucking was born as a family-owned business in March 1981.
Shortly after LuGreg Trucking was formed, Greg asked Luke to take another leap of faith by officially joining him in this calling. After praying with Bert, Luke once more demonstrated his trust in the Lord and his family, leaving his job with Texaco after a 27year career and joining his son and his wife at LuGreg Trucking.
With a passion that was a hallmark of his character, Luke utilized his God-given gifts and implemented the core values that shaped his life and the lives of his family as well as the foundation of LuGreg Trucking.
The core values of “people matter,” proven by integrity, quality, strong work ethic, persistence, conservative financial principles and humility were deeply important to the company because Luke firmly believed these values were a witness to our faith in our Lord.
After 15 years of long hours and the hard work of establishing this calling, Luke retired from LuGreg in 1995, selling his interest to his son.
Luke’s passions and hobbies were closely related to those of his wife.
Both Luke and Bert had a passion for travel, speed, motorcycles and fishing. As reflective of his entire life, his family and his friends often marveled at the passion that Luke demonstrated whether it was riding motorcycles (always at a high rate of speed) with the love of his life Bert, logging 500,000 miles in their various motorhomes traveling together with their friends, or fishing for hours at Lake Texoma for striper with Bert.
The foundation of Luke’s life was his faith and relationship with his Lord Jesus.
Luke’s second family was his church family where he served as treasurer for numerous years and as a deacon for over 50 years. His commitment to the family of God was very evident in his support of his local church, with the last 58 years of his life as a member of the First Baptist Church of Kingfisher.
Luke will be remembered for his passion, tenacity, big heart and love of people. Although accomplished in many areas of his life, Luke viewed himself as the common man and related to all from this viewpoint. His love of life was infectious.
One of his favorite bible verses was Matthew 22: 3637 - “And they asked Jesus, Teacher, which is the greatest commandment? And He said, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and foremost commandment.’ The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” Luke loved God and he loved people demonstrated by the actions of a life well lived.
Luke was preceded in his homecoming by his loving wife, Alberta (Bert) Kannady; his parents, Louis and Wilma Kannady; his younger sister, Mary Elizabeth Struble; his brother-inlaw, Jerry Struble; and his daughter, Schrie Braden.
Luke is survived by his brother and his sister-in-law Burr and Barb Kannady, sister-in-law Pat Buford, daughter Angela Specht, son Ronnie Kannady, sonin- law Gerald Braden, son and daughter-in-law Greg and Susan Kannady and grandchildren Judd and Sarah Fisher, Joey and Ashley Bowling, Doug and Allison Haymaker, Alex and Autumn Kidd, Zac and Shiloh Kannady and Shea and Paige Smith, along with numerous great-grandchildren.
The family would like to thank all of Luke’s friends and church family for all the love and kindness extended to us during this difficult period.
We would also like to extend a special thank you to all the staff of Mercy OKC for the loving care provided to Luke these last two weeks.
Lastly the family would like to thank Kennedy Winter and the staff of Wilson Funeral Home for their sensitivity and love extended to our family during this time.
A celebration of life will be held at the Kingfisher First Baptist Church, at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 27. A meal will be served back at the church immediately following the graveside for all family and friends wishing to attend.
The family requests that donations in Luke’s name be made to Baptist Village Communities at baptistvillage. org/giving or Kingfisher First Baptist Church/ Legacy Fund.