Norman, Oklahoma - Keltie Barbara Paton-Sparger was born February 2nd, 1969, in Dade County, Florida, and passed away on September 2, 2025, at Norman Regional Hospital in Cleveland County, Oklahoma. She was 56.

However, her journey was not just a timeline of events and locations from birth to death, but a tapestry of connections, woven in a manner that would make the most adept historian bluster as they tried to make order of the chaos, because you could not keep her energy confined to one simple narrative any more than you could capture the sun and demand that it stop shining at night.

Ask a hundred people what her story was, and you would hear a hundred wildly different variations. Elements would be the same, but somehow, she defied the rules of linear existence in the same way that a folk hero does; remembered as larger than life and spoken of in grandiose terms in the recollections of those who claimed to be lucky enough to have been there.

These tales, sometimes seemingly disconnected from the same reality the rest of us inhabit, were the background and backdrop to the kaleidoscopic era of her time on this earth. And, while it would be impossible to break down her actions into one narrow purpose, it's easy to acknowledge the most important enduring message of her life: "Be Kind."

Life was not always kind to Keltie, and she would often tell you how in great detail. But, as tragedy recurred with almost malicious frequency, she took all the pain and loss and forged it into a shield; not for her benefit, but to hold over and protect the people in her world who also felt the cruel randomness of Fate. She never wished for others to feel the same pain as her, and she would provide any comfort possible to those who did.

She carried this shield - this weight - all through her life. It became heavier over the years, as it was adorned by moments and memories. But, it also grew stronger as those pieces of shared history were made possible through friendship, family, and Love.

Her Love was fierce and loyal, and it came with the expectation that you would be the best version of yourself. It was not a request; it was a requirement. And if you knew her for a long enough time, you couldn't help but become a better person.

If you knew her, you would also know that she could set a room on fire with her intense passion... For music, which played at volumes that only a metal-head would consider reasonable... For politics, which could be the source of euphoric excitement or burning anger... For communication, which she had a special innate gift for, always knowing how to say what you needed to hear, when you needed to hear it, or knowing when listening or just holding you was the only thing to do. No one could hold you as tightly as her, and no one could truly listen the way she did.

As great of a listener as she was, if she needed you to know something, she would tell you as soon as she could. She knew that life was too short to waste time, so she filled it with as much light as possible, and the world around her was made all the more radiant and vibrant because of it.

Keltie was a force of nature... An aurora seen from space; the eye of a hurricane passing over the Caribbean; snowfall that creates crisp silence in Canada; fog settling like a blanket over the United Kingdom; and the electricity in the air before a thunderstorm would roll across the Great Plains of Oklahoma. The Universe could only contain her energy on this earth for so long. It has returned now to the stars, long before anyone was ready.

Keltie knew. She knew one could attempt to be prepared for the end, but you will never truly be ready. The only thing to do is take life as it happens, holding the pieces together as best you can, and keep moving forward.

She no longer has to carry those pieces, or the shield, or her pain. They are gone now, and all that is left is the moments in the hearts and minds of those she loved and who loved her. In the end, that is her story, the stories they will tell, and retell. And in those words and laughter and tears will be her true legacy: One of joy and sorrow, of comfort and pain, of forgiveness that does not forget, of rage, and of Love, and most of all... Kindness.

She is survived by her best friend, Traci; sister, Carla with her husband Dick; brother, Stefan with his wife Beth; nieces, Ellissa, Kelly, Meghan, Quinn, and Stefanie; and her partner, Dave.

Online condolences may be shared at www.havenbrookfuneralhome.com.