OKLAHOMA CITY — It wasn’t that Cleo Fields shined shoes well for 28 years, even though he did. The love and respect people had for him were prompted by his ability to love and give support to others when they needed it most.
And, in the courthouse of the county with the largest population in Oklahoma, there were plenty of circumstances for people of all walks of life to need a kind word and smile or just a few wise words, which he was always willing to give.
He died on July 24, setting off a wave of sadness throughout the courthouse.
“Cleo,” as everyone called him, was honored throughout the day on Monday with two services, one at the beginning of the day and another at the end. He was the first person ever to lie in state at the Oklahoma County Courthouse. It took a resolution of the commissioners to establish the practice.
Large impact
Fields’ shoe shine stand was in a prime location on the ground floor, where he would come into contact with every judge, every attorney, and many others.
Every time this reporter came in, I would walk by that stand, and if his focus weren’t on shining shoes, he would give a big smile and say hello.
He had such an impact on everyone at the courthouse that the county commissioners passed a resolution proposed by Commissioner Brian Maughan to honor Fields by allowing his body to lie in state in the courthouse on Monday, August 4.
In the early afternoon Monday, talking to those who came by the second floor entry area where his casket was attended by a member of the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Honor Guard, it was common to see them tear up almost immediately when they started to talk about him.
Free Press talked with his youngest daughter, Shree McConnell, about what the family saw and heard from him about what working at the Courthouse meant to him.
“This was his family,” she said. “You know, we were his family. But he loved coming here every day. He actually told us when he can’t come here and come to work, he didn’t want to be here anymore. And that’s the way things ended. This was his world.”
Commissioner Brian Maughan at times seemed to struggle to keep his composure when we interviewed him about Fields. And, it was the same when the afternoon remembrance service was over and the Sheriff’s Honor Guard were about to take the casket out and to the hearse waiting at the street.
“He was larger than life,” Maughan told me earlier in the day. “I don’t know anybody else that I’ve ever met that everybody I knew loved him, not just liked him. They loved him, and he gave hugs out to strangers and friends. He was beloved by people who only knew him briefly, and people who have known him for decades.”
“He was a great person to talk to,” said Commissioner Myles Davidson. “He was always there with a great word, inspiring word, and I’ve said it numerous times, he did much more than shine shoes. He shined our souls. He was there every time you needed him. He was a great guy.”
Recently elected Commissioner Jason Lowe has not been a commissioner for long but he was in and out of the Courthouse for years as a defense attorney, which is very often a frustrating experience.
We asked him about what Fields meant to him as a young defense attorney.
“He helped me navigate through the courthouse when I was a young lawyer, and just encouraged me to keep going when I was getting my butt kicked in the courtroom,” Lowe told us. “He just encouraged me, and yeah, he was just an amazing guy.”
Lowe said that Fields talked to everyone and listened to them.
“Just so amazing, just an amazing spirit. Just touched everyone in the courthouse,” Lowe said. “It didn’t matter if you were a lawyer, elected official, or … someone just visiting the courthouse. He touched everyone.”
Brett is the founder, and editor in chief of Oklahoma City Free Press. He continues to contribute reporting and photography to the efforts of the publication as well as leadership in developing support.
