Mechell Darlene Howell, daughter of Dale & Darlene Beaty and John Marshall Howell, was born January 15, 1959, in Fairview, Oklahoma. She passed away on April 11, 2026, after a tragic accident.

Mechell lived in the Chester area all of her life. She attended the one-room schoolhouse in Chester, and later attended Seiling Public Schools, graduating with the class of 1977. After high school, Mechell held various jobs in Seiling, including the Domino Truck Stop in Seiling for 29 years, eventually as the store manager. She then worked in the Seiling Clinic for Dr. Kenneth Duffy, for a few years, before retiring in 2020.

On her 18th birthday, January 15, 1977, she married her soul mate, Gary Leon Sander. Through that union, she gained a son, David Lee, and from that union a daughter, Bonni Sue, was born on March 1, 1980. Mechell and Gary made their home on the Sander family farm until 1990, when they moved to their home north of Chester. Mechell and Gary enjoyed 47 wonderful years of marriage, until Gary’s passing in 2024, and Mechell continued to honor their union and enjoy those memories until she passed.

As a young girl, Mechell enjoyed riding horses, helping Dale on the family farm and spending time with all of her siblings. After she and Gary married, she continued all of these things but was also very hands-on with the running of their own farm and cattle on the Sander farm. She was very involved with her kids’ activities, from the Friday night lights of David’s football games, to helping Bonni with her horse training and rodeo queen contests. After the kids had moved out, she and Gary enjoyed many adventures and travels to the mountains of Colorado and New Mexico, later taking their kids and grandkids with them on many of their trips to those locations, as well as to dig for diamonds in Arkansas and crystals at Salt Plains. Mechell, Gary and the family enjoyed many camping trips together and made great memories.

She started raising goats with her dad, Dale, prior to his death, and continued the herd up until her death. Breeding the nannies and raising the babies gave her immense joy, she loved watching the little ones play and run in the pens and pasture. She loved sharing them with her granddaughters and great-grandson, from just watching them play to bottle feeding many and doctoring them all. The grandkids, her sister, Brigette and niece Chloe all played a big part in helping her with her “babies”. She loved teaching and showing others how to take care of and doctor the goats, many times playing the neighborhood “vet” for others in the area, and receiving their assistance with her herd in turn.

While sometimes maybe a close second to her goats, her family was the most important thing to her. Watching her granddaughters grow up and being a part of their activities was something she always made time for. From attending Bryanna and Jasmine’s high school functions, to helping Madison celebrate the birth of her son, being a grandma was something she relished. She also had a great time joining Bonni on many of her travels from the Oklahoma State Parks, and even the whirlwind trip clear up to Lake Michigan.

Mechell enjoyed simple things, her goats, spending time with her family, helping her neighbors, traveling, hunting for and collecting rocks. Mechell was preceded in death by her husband, Gary, her parents, Dale & Darlene Beaty and John Marshall Howell, her sister, Theta Bisel, her parents-in-law, Squint & Maxine Sander, brother-in-law Ronnie Sander, and sisters-in-law, Patricia Thompson and Susie Jones.

She is survived by her children, David Lee Sander of Fayetteville, Arkansas, and Bonni Sue Sidders and husband Marty, of Alva, Oklahoma; her granddaughters Madison Lee Sander, Bryanna Mechell Sidders, and Jasmine Beth TeLinde; her great-grandson Declan Scott Davis. She is also survived by her brother Michael Ryel and wife Loretta, her sisters Connie Randall and husband James, Debbie Nightengale and husband Jon, Donna Hancock and husband Dale, Brigette Baird, and Cindy Beaty, as well as her many nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.

Services for Mechell will be held Saturday, April 18, 2026, at 2:00pm, at the Redinger Funeral Home, 105 Gary England Ave., Seiling, Oklahoma, with burial to follow at the Chester Cemetery, north of Chester on County Rd. 54. The service will be live-streamed through the funeral home’s Facebook page, for those that are unable to attend.

At the request of the family, there will not be visitation prior to the service.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the Chester Cemetery Association, c/o Redinger Funeral Home (Box 236, Seiling, OK 73663).

The family would like to express their sincere gratitude to Chris Unwin, Kirk Sander, Thomas Ray, and all of the emergency responders who attended to Mechell after the accident. We can never thank you enough for everything you did.