Ima Jean was born on July 14, 1935, in Arkansas and attended schools in Texas, Kansas and Arkansas, as her family moved to follow construction jobs. Ima Jean graduated as the Valedictorian of Kensett High School in Kensett, AR in 1953. She was an excellent student, particularly in math and science, and played on the girls’ basketball team, developing a life-long love of sports. After graduation, Ima Jean began her first job at the shoe factory in Searcy, AR, alongside her sisters. She was a very diligent and thrifty employee and saved enough money in the first couple of years to treat her mother and nephew to a trip to Niagara Falls. Ima Jean continued her work history with jobs in manufacturing, including a long tenure with Chicopee, a Johnson & Johnson company, in North Little Rock, AR, where she retired in 1997. Ima Jean loved sewing, so after she retired and relocated to Tulsa, OK, she realized her retirement goal of having a part-time job in the fabric department at Walmart. Ima Jean retired from Walmart in 2018 at the age of 82, after 20 years of service.
Ima Jean married Raymond Wheeler in October 1956, and they eventually settled in Jacksonville, AR, where they raised their four children. Her passion for sports and sewing definitely benefitted her children. Ima Jean made many of their clothes and was a regular at all their school and sporting events. Whether it was baking a cake for the school carnival, sewing a choir dress or school program costume, cheering on the boy’s football or baseball teams, or washing the tons of quilts and blankets after a camping trip, Ima Jean was always front and center in her children’s lives.
After her retirement in 1997, Ima Jean relocated to Tulsa, OK, where her two daughters lived. She built a house and proceeded to grow a bountiful garden each year, filled with tomatoes, okra, peppers, and a multitude of other vegetables. She shared her love of gardening, cooking, sewing, playing cards and sports with her grandchildren, and was an active supporter of all their sporting events. She was even known to challenge them to a game or match, always believing that she could play strong, regardless of her age.
Ima Jean relocated to Collierville, TN in 2018 to live with her son and his family. Ima Jean had a lifelong desire to have twins of her very own, only to gain them as grandchildren at the age of 80. She created many new traditions with her twins, which included winding her prized grandfather clock, playing games, reading books, doing homework, and spoiling their puppy. No matter where she resided, Ima Jean was a passionate Arkansas Razorback fan. When she lived in Jacksonville, Ima Jean attended many Razorback football games and became a member of the Back of the Bus Club, traveling to out of state games. Half of her winter wardrobe was made up of Razorback sweatshirts and the other half was purple, her favorite color. Ima Jean was also an avid reader, particularly her Harlequin romance novels. If she wasn’t watching sports, cooking, sewing, or gardening, she was reading.
Ima Jean was preceded in death by her parents, William and Margaret (Lawson) Henderson; sisters, Alice Henderson and Eudora Cain; brother, James Henderson; and husband, Raymond Wheeler. She is survived by her children, Gail Hay (Allan), Keith Wheeler (Robin), Taunya Wheeler, and Kevin Wheeler (Bobbi); and nephew, Vernon McNully (Rebecca). She is also survived by ten grandchildren: Robyn Harman (Steve), Lindsay Lee (Kyle), Whitney Scott (Casey), Austin Wheeler, Aiden Wheeler, Hannah Wheeler, Tracy Dawa (Michael), Krystal Vandervort (Dylan), Shawna Glover, and Corey Glover. In addition, Ima Jean is survived by ten great-grandchildren; Ethan Harman, Ben Harman, Adrieanna Honeycutt, Mitchell Honeycutt, Carter Scott, Mason Dawa, Nathaniel Dawa, Alison Vandervort, Weston Vandervort, and Emma Glover; and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.
The funeral service is being held at City Church (8200 Macon Road, Cordova TN 38018) at 10:00 am on October 14, 2023, and the interment will follow at Kensett Cemetery in Kensett, AR at 4:00 pm.
