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Verl L. "Buddy" Capps, Jr. lived a purpose-driven life inspiring those around him to be better. Born January 5, 1955, in Charlotte, North Carolina, the firstborn of the late Verl L., Sr. and Helen Capps, he was the eldest brother of three sisters. Buddy passed away on Wednesday, January 4, 2023.
He married his wife Mary on St. Patrick's Day, 1990. They had three children, Ryan, Jessica, and Erin. Buddy loved to coach, read, act in theatre, cook, and sing in a variety of groups including church choirs and community choruses. He was drawn to mentor and impacted the lives of all those he coached.
Buddy was a 1973 graduate of Duncanville, Texas High School where he participated in football, basketball, musical groups, theatre, and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA). He continued his involvement in these activities during college at Oklahoma Christian College, where he was a two-time letterman in basketball and sang and played the bass guitar in a band called Copperfield. He transferred to Dallas Baptist College finishing his collegiate basketball career as one-time letterman in basketball and received a BS degree in biology and physical education in 1978.
Upon graduating from college, he taught biology and coached in Duncanville, Grand Prairie, Texas, Madill, Plainview, Guymon and Marietta, retiring at Plainview in 2016 to conclude his 40+ year career in education. During his tenure at Madill High School, he created the Golden Shoe Award to commemorate the rivalry between Madill and Kingston. In Marietta, he started the cross-country program and in Guymon and Marietta, he established a Fellowship of Christian Athletes program. Many of his basketball, golf, and cross-country teams found success and made the playoffs. Two golf teams won state championships while three other teams were state runners-up. He was a five-time Coach of the Year in the various conferences in which his teams participated. In 2003, Buddy was named Oklahoma's FCA All-State Coach.
Though a man of few words, when Buddy chose to speak, his words were purposeful and intentional. Buddy lived a life of service to his God, his family, and his students. Through his family and students, a legacy of faith, hope, and love will live on.
Survivors include his wife, Mary; son, Ryan; daughters, Jessica (Chad) and Erin; sisters, Kimberly Alexander, Christie Siar (Mike), and Cheryl Hawkins (John); grandsons, Sam, Mac, and Jack; and many nieces and nephews.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Coach Buddy Capps Scholarship Fund at Community Activities, Inc. of Ardmore, P.O. Box 2597, Ardmore, OK 73402 with Coach Buddy Capps Scholarship in the memo. More information can be obtained by contacting Mary Kate Wilson at (580) 223-3883. Donations may also be made to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes by visiting http://www.fca.org/donate.
A celebration of life will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, January 14 at the First Methodist Church, Ardmore.
This obituary included a photo of Coach Capps.
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