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With her family at her bedside, on the morning of May 22, 2026, at the age of 49 years and one month, Amanda Fowler was taken into God’s merciful arms.
Entering the world on April 22, 1977 in Fort Smith, Arkansas, Lilliann Amanda Terry Fowler was the second child and only daughter born to Buddy Leon Terry and Patsy Ann (Yandell) Terry.
A funeral service to honor Amanda’s life is 2 p.m. Tuesday at Freedom House Fellowship Church in Heavener with Reverend David Billy and Brother Sam Dyer officiating. Burial will follow in Hontubby Cemetery, under the care and direction of Dowden-Roberts Funeral Home and Cremation Service of Heavener.
She grew up in the Hontubby/Lovings communities, attended Hodgen School through the 8th grade, and received her diploma from Heavener High School in 1995. After graduation, she worked when her health permitted and traveled some. Saved and baptized at an early age, she kept her membership in the Lovings Baptist Church. Lilliann Amanda brought happiness and hope to her extended family, but especially to her mother and her girls.
Amanda had just turned 11 when she was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, the autoimmune condition that controlled much of her activity and which eventually led to two kidney transplants. The first was done in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 2005, a loving gift from her mother.
After she lost that kidney, she faced several years of dialysis until 2013 when she received a second kidney from an anonymous donor at Integris Baptist in Oklahoma City. Although she endured multiple health crises, Amanda was not defined by her condition. Her courage and perseverance were inspiring. She liked to laugh; her smile was catching; and her attitude could be saucy. She was a caring mother, daughter, granddaughter, niece, cousin. (And she was particularly favored by Grandma Lilly and “Father” Kenneth.) She was also a giving friend—loyal, generous, and unselfish.
A nurturer at heart, Amanda loved children, often tending little ones. Despite being warned of the toll that child-bearing could take on her health, she chose to have her own. She was 25 when, on June 7, 2002, she gave birth to her first daughter Kyley LeeAnn. Then, 13 months later, on July 19, 2003, she added Ashlyn Marie. To her, the girls were priceless, worth the risk she took. She made a home with her daughters until the past few years when the need for care required that she live with her mother and Dallas.
The determination, kindness, and positivity which characterized Lilliann Amanda Terry Fowler made the world better. Let it be known: Amanda was loved.
Those who will treasure her memory are her beloved daughters Kyley LeeAnn Fowler and Ashlyn Marie Fowler, both of Heavener; her mother Patsy Lyons and her step-dad Dallas of Heavener; her brothers Bobby Leon Terry and wife April of Heavener, James Daniel “Jamie” Terry and wife Sonya of the Hontubby community; her aunts and uncle Linda Rainbolt of Checotah, Paul Yandell and wife Helen of the Lovings community, Elaine Yandell of the Hontubby Community; special helper/cousin Rochelle Watts and husband Joey of the Hontubby Community; several nieces, nephews, cousins, other relatives, and friends.
Family members who preceded Amanda in death were an infant son; her dad Bud “Boley” Terry; her brother Buddy “Bo,” Terry, Jr.; her grandparents: Bob Yandell, Lillie Tolbert, and Kenneth Tolbert; her aunt, Pam Yandell; her uncles, Donny and Ronnie Yandell and Jim Rainbolt; her dad’s brothers Joe, Raymond, Basil, Peasy, Bob, and Jerry Terry, and his sister Sue Ann Holcomb.
Viewing for Amanda is from 9 a.m. until 8 p.m., with the family visiting with friends from 6 until 8 p.m. Monday at the funeral home.
Pallbearers are Talen Terry, Weston Terry, Carman Rainbolt, Kevin Yandell, Cole Yandell, and Michael Yandell.
In lieu of flowers, the family prefers that donations be made to her daughters, who are driving daily to Muskogee to pursue training in occupational therapy, Integris Baptist Transplant Center, or Hontubby Cemetery
To sign Amanda’s online guestbook, please visit www.dowdenrobertsfuneralhome.com.
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