Col. Chris LeMaure Jefferies (Ret.), devoted husband, father, grandfather and friend passed away peacefully at his home Saturday evening, Nov. 8, 2014, in Marlow, Oklahoma, surrounded by the love of his family. Funeral services were held Thursday, Nov. 13, 2014, at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Duncan, Oklahoma, with Bishop Tom Cross officiating. Interment at Fort Sill National Cemetery, Elgin, Oklahoma. Military Honors provided by the Sheppard Air Force Base Honor Guard of Wichita Falls. Services under the direction of Don Grantham Funeral Home, Duncan, Oklahoma. Chris was born on June 2, 1940, to William Martin Jefferies and Lucile Crowton Jefferies in Alameda, California. He attended school in the Oakland area. After graduating from high school, he entered the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves and served on active duty. He later served as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. After his mission, he went back to school and graduated from Brigham Young University with a bachelor’s degree in political science and entered the United States Air Force through the ROTC. During his Air Force career, he earned a master’s degree from University of Pittsburgh and Ph.D. from University of Oklahoma. Col. Jefferies was a veteran of the Vietnam and Desert Storm wars and spent thousands of hours flying airlift missions around the world. During his 28-year career in the Air Force, he served at the highest levels of the defense department as a career administrator, planner and educator. He married his sweetheart, Betty, on May 28, 1982, in Fairfax, Virginia. After he retired from the Air Force in 1992, they moved back to Betty’s home state where he began his second career as director of operations at the University of Oklahoma Medical School and then as the director of the Chisholm Trail Heritage Center in Duncan. Since then he has served on the boards of the Duncan Group Homes, on the Chisholm Trail Association, Save the 905 and Southwest Oklahoma Historical Society. Chris has authored several historical novels that chronicled the Jefferies ancestors as they left England and crossed the plains to settle in Utah. Chris loved spending time with his family, serving in his church callings, traveling, reading, history and working out. He was an example and inspiration to his family and friends and was loved by all. Chris is survived by his wife of 32 years, Betty Ann Jefferies of the home; children, Sherry Lee, Danny and Kim Avens; Chris’ children, Rhett and Melecia Jefferies, Scot and Beatrice Jefferies, Trent and Sandi Jefferies, Samantha Jefferies, Ryan and Shanie Jefferies, Laura and Scott Wence and their mother, Deanna Dotson; siblings, Bruce and Jane Jefferies, Maren and Charles Lancaster, Denise and Mitch Hokansen and Joy Lee Rickman; and 22 grandchildren. Chris was preceded in death by his parents, William and Lucile Jefferies and a sister, Julena Shupe. Memorial donations may be made to Chris’s “legacy” non-profit project, The William Jefferies (1831) Historic Home Association; c/o Trent Jefferies; 3987 Oregon Dune Court; S. Jordan, Utah 84095. For more information, you may email trent.jefferies@gmail.com.