Colleen (Jones) Akin

Hazel Colleen Akin, age 86, of Shawnee, Oklahoma, passed away Thursday, September 4, 2025 with her family by her side.

She was born December 21, 1938 in Chandler, Oklahoma to Henry Clayton and Hazel Lee (Simpson) Jones.  She grew up in the Chandler and Sparks area, attending grade school in Sparks.  She graduated from Shawnee High School.

Colleen married Fred Jack Akin on October 3, 1956 in Reno, Nevada. and they made their home in Shawnee.

She owned and operated a dress shop in Shawnee and later worked a clothing store in lady’s fashion.  She operated the Highlander Center Laundry with her mother for more than 15 years.  She loved volunteering at the nursing home, where she would sing karaoke, and played drums for the Senior Center Band.  Colleen loved to mow her 5-acre yard and kept it looking like a golf course.  She enjoyed her flower gardens and being outdoors and mowed her own yard even up until a few days before her passing.  Her greatest love were her two dogs, that she cared for after her husband’s passing.

Colleen is preceded in death by; her parents; her husband, Fred Akin; and her brother, Leroy Jones.

Those left to cherish her memory are, her daughter, DeAnna Thomas of Tulsa; son-in-law, Chuck Thomas of Tulsa; son, Dean Akin of Shawnee; grandchildren, Matt Thomas and wife Theresa, Lindsey Thomas, Spencer Thomas, and Andrew McKinney and wife Mallory; great grandchildren, Mia Thomas, Madison Thomas, Emma McKinney, and Ava McKinney; her pups, Toby and Beau, and several nieces, nephews and other extended family and friends.               

Graveside Service will be 2:00 p.m., Monday, September 8, 2025 at Resthaven Memorial Park in Shawnee, with Reverend Mike Craig officiating under the direction of Cooper Funeral Home of Tecumseh.