Helen Mabel Hughes

Helen Mabel Hughes, known as Mabel, of Perry, Oklahoma, passed away on September 30th, 2026, at the age of 93. 

Mabel’s life was closely connected to Perry, where she and her husband, Harry Ervin Hughes, established their first home after marrying in Stillwater on September 8, 1950. Together they raised three children - Beverly, Rosanna, and Harry Jr., affectionately known as “Bub”; and shared 71 years of marriage before Harry’s death on September 30, 2021.

Their partnership extended into their working lives. Mabel kept the books for Perry Paint and Body Shop, which Harry operated for 25 years before its sale in November 1978. She also served as secretary of Three Sands Oil Company, contributing her own work to the family’s business endeavors.

Perry remained home throughout their decades together, even as Mabel and Harry traveled around the world with family and friends. They were members of the First United Methodist Church and the Perry Golf and Country Club. Their home even held a piece of Perry’s history: bricks salvaged from the old St. Louis Hotel were used in its construction. Mable enjoyed bowling and was in a league for a couple of years. She also loved her many fishing trips with her family, and taking her three children skiing to Red River and Angle Fire in New Mexico.

Over the years, their family grew to include sons-in-law Max Behara and Danny Coldiron (deceased), grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren. Their shared life stretched across generations, connecting the family’s beginnings in Perry with the lives and families their children went on to build.

Family members who have passed before Mabel include her husband, Harry; her son, Harry “Bub” Hughes Jr.; her granddaughter, Abbi Dawn Coldiron; her sisters, Effie Marie Welch, Juanita Ann Bounds; and her two brothers Chet VanHosen and Roy VanHosen.

Donations can be made in her name to the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America (https://alzfdn.org/), or the Dementia Society of America (https://Dementia Society of America/).

Condolences may be sent to the family via an online guest book at www.dightonmarler.com.

Services are pending.