Aileen P. Young
1932 – 2025
Aileen Pauline (Kisner) Young was born on September 30, 1932, in Ingalls, Kansas on a country farm. She was the 8th of nine children born to the union of lgnatz and Katherine Kisner. She attended school in Ingalls, Kansas, until her family gave up on farm life and moved to Dodge City, Kansas. She graduated from Dodge City High School in 1950.
After graduation, her father incurred cancer and was receiving treatment in Wichita, Kansas. She and her brother’s fiancée would visit him there. It was during one of these visits that she met Harold, at a local hangout. She ended up getting a job there and they soon became a couple. During this time, Harold enlisted in the Airborne, and before being deployed to Fort Bragg, N.C., they eloped and were married on May 14, 1953, in Forsyth, Missouri. He spent some of his service in the Korean War as a paratrooper and was discharged in April 1954.
They eventually moved to Tulsa in 1956, where Harold attended the University of Tulsa, petroleum engineering program. Aileen obtained a job for an oil company in Tulsa and in August 1957, their first child, Cynthia, was born.
Upon his graduation in 1958, they moved first to Great Bend, Kansas and later to Liberal, Kansas.
This was the perfect location for the young couple. Aileen began her love of duplicate bridge, making the esteemed title of Life Master in 1970. The couple joined the country club, petroleum club, and made numerous friends, some that they kept until this day. Harold was an avid golfer, which Aileen joined in as well. Aileen was also very involved in the Episcopal church and became the first female licensed lay reader in Kansas.
After some time, the couple had Daniel Andrew Young on May 24th, 1965, and this completed their family. Since Harold’s office was located at the Liberal airport, it was handy for him to learn to fly. He soloed after 10 hours of training. He owned and flew a number of small airplanes which allowed for trips to the horse races in New Mexico with the family. After many wonderful years in Liberal, Harold acquired a job with Shenandoah Oil, and the family was re-located to Edmond, Oklahoma. They joined Twin Hills Country Club,
and Aileen became involved in the women’s league, continued to play bridge, and became a fixture at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Edmond.
In 1998, Harold was diagnosed with tongue cancer. After an invasive surgery, radiation, and years of rehabilitation, life changed. Aileen cared for him throughout this ordeal. He eventually died during heart surgery on January 21, 2013.
Since then, Aileen continued to be involved in church and some family activities. Her last years were spent in assisted living centers and finally a memory care facility, where she died on April 1, 2025.
She is survived by her daughter, Cynthia, and her husband Terry. Her son, Daniel and his wife Kim. Five grandchildren, Carly Shanklin, Trevor Shanklin and his wife Leslie, Corbin Shanklin and his wife Chelsea, Jacob Moss and his wife Haley, and Tyler Young, and numerous great-grandchildren.
A Celebration of Life will be held at 1:00pm on Saturday, April 19, 2025, at Matthews Funeral Home Chapel, Edmond, Oklahoma.
Miss you Grandma!