DAN DALE SAID I Can SCHOLARSHIP
Dan E. Dale was born on January 28, 1932, in Enid, Oklahoma. He was the middle child of Lawrence and Mary Dale, sandwiched between older sister Nina and younger brother Loy. Dan had originally been a twin, but his mother contracted German measles while pregnant and miscarried the other baby. When Dan was born, doctors eventually discovered that all of his internal organs were backward and on the wrong side, possibly as a result of the German measles.This is a condition known as total situs inversus. Dan had the distinction of being the first American to serve in the United States military with this condition.
Dan had met the love of his life, Lou Ann Boyle, at Enid High School when they were 15 years old. He was the handsome and talented speech student, winning all the competitions, while she was the smart but terribly shy journalist who admired his confidence. They dated throughout high school and Dan proposed after graduation, spinning dreams of their lives on Broadway where he wanted to sing and act as a career. Although she loved him, Lou Ann was afraid of that kind of unmoored lifestyle and rejected his proposal. Heartbroken, humiliated (and always aspiring to a grand, dramatic gesture), Dan immediately enlisted in the Navy and shipped out within a week for California, where he would remain for his entire service. After Dan was honorably discharged from the Navy in 1951, he returned home to find that Lou Ann was engaged to another man. Following a long and heartfelt conversation, Dan convinced Lou Ann that he was truly the man for her, and they were married on June 11, 1951. Dan then worked to complete a business degree in finance from Friends University in Wichita and enjoyed a successful career in banking, where he was beloved by his customers whom he truly treated like family.
Throughout his lifetime, music and theatre were always important aspects of Dan’s life. From his earliest days singing at home and at church, to developing a professional comedy act as a young man, and eventually becoming a renowned actor and director for community and church theatre, Dan approached every aspect of performance with a consummate dedication to detail and passion for his work. He taught his daughter Angelyn and grandchildren Larkin and Molleigh McCann to treat music and theatre performances with the same reverence, and that each audience deserves absolutely as close to perfection as the performer is capable of achieving. Dan believed that his talent was his ultimate gift from God, to be used not to generate applause, but to draw others closer to God and to fellowship.
Dan E. Dale died on September 13, 2001, after asking that his tombstone be engraved with the words, “My cup runneth over.” He was a joyous, positive man who worked diligently to lift up those around him and whose footsteps are truly worth following.
