Obituary: Panny McElroy, Co-founder of McElroy Mfg.

Frances Louise (Panny) McElroy, co-founder of what would become McElroy Mfg.and a long-time DCA member, passed away Oct. 10, after a brief illness. She was84.

Born Oct. 16, 1921, in McAlester, Okla., Panny became a life-long Tulsan. InMarch 1942, she married Arthur H. (Art) McElroy of Tulsa.

In 1953, she and Art founded what would become McElroy Mfg. Inc., as aspecialty job shop in their garage. Their company began its rise in the late1960s, as several of its product offerings established McElroy as a leader inthe markets it served. As McElroy Mfg. Inc. grew, Panny was the strong and quietlady behind the scenes, who ran all the financial affairs of the business, allwhile remaining an active and dedicated mother. After the death of Art in 1988,she assumed the role of chairman, CEO and president. She retired in 1996. Today,the company is led by her son and two daughters.

Panny is survived by brother, Fred Morris Welsh Jr. and his wife, Jan, ofRichardson, Texas; two daughters,Donna McElroy Dutton and her husband, David, ofTulsa; Peggy McElroy Tanner and her husband, David, of Bixby; a son, A.H. “Chip”McElroy II and his wife, Sharon, of Tulsa; three granddaughters, two grandsonsand two great-grandsons.