Joye Harwell

Graveside services for Joye Murphy Harwell, 94 of Skiatook, were held at 11 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 18, 2016, at Clinton Cemetery.
She died Saturday, Aug. 13, 2016, in Tulsa.
Harwell was born Nov. 6, 1921, to Curtis and Grace Elva (Trimble) Murphy in Foss.  She was a graduate of Foss High School and continued her education at University of Oklahoma in Norman.  During her time at OU she worked part-time in the Mathematics and Astronomy Department as a secretary and librarian.  Harwell graduated with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and a minor in mathematics.  
After graduating she worked at Humble Oil and Refining Company laboratories in Houston, Texas.  A few years after the war ended she moved to Austin to attend the University of Texas, where she worked part-time as a research assistant in the chemistry department while earning a master’s degree in chemistry with a minor in physics.  
For the next nine years, she remained at the University of Texas and worked full-time in the chemistry department.  
In 1961 she married Dr. Kenneth Harwell. The couple moved to Ponca City, where they both were employed at Continental Oil Company.
They later moved to Kansas City and remained there 24 years. After her husband’s retirement they moved to Skiatook.
Harwell was preceded in death by her parents; her husband; and a brother, Neil.
She is survived by her friends and caregivers.