Jane A. “Jana” King
Jane A. (“Jana”) King, 86, most recently of Farmington Hills, Michigan, passed away on December 22, 2022.
Jana was born on December 6, 1936, to her beloved parents Ila Grace Mayo Weaver and Herbert Thomas Weaver in Gorman, Texas. She and her older brother, Herbert T. Weaver, Jr., were proud to call Eastland, Texas, their home. Despite bypassing two grades in school, Jana graduated as Valedictorian from Eastland High School at the age of 16. She studied education at Baylor University in Waco and was a member of DAP sorority. After graduation, Jana worked briefly as an elementary school teacher.
Jana married W. Douglas King in 1958. They soon welcomed three children into their family for whom Jana spent the remainder of her life in nurturing and unwavering support. Other than her Christian faith, her family was her focus. Through festivities and failures, trials and triumphs, she comforted, strengthened, and encouraged. This included not only more formal roles as classroom mother, Girls in Action leader, and Cub Scouts sponsor, but also in countless acts of counseling, reassurance, and hand-holding. After raising her children in Shreveport, Louisiana, Jana moved to the Dallas, Texas, area where she worked for W.R. Grace and Manpower. She moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 2004 to be near her daughter and granddaughters, and was employed by various schools in the area. In each of these cities, she was a faithful and dedicated member of a Baptist Church. Her final church home was South Tulsa Baptist, where she was a member of the Ruth’s Open Door Sunday School class and volunteered as a Sunday morning greeter and weekly meal server. She greatly enjoyed assisting at The Ministry Center, a clothing mission in the Tulsa area.
Jana was an accomplished musician and began playing the piano at a very young age. As a teen, she was frequently asked to perform for local civic group gatherings such as the Lions Club, for which she was elected Sweetheart. She amazed friends and family by spontaneously sitting down at the keys and playing whatever sheet music happened to be present. She also lent her talented voice to various choral groups and played in the handbell choir at First Baptist Church of Shreveport. Her love for music expanded to dancing as well, enjoying both square and round dance clubs. The quintessential host, Jana relished sponsoring gatherings at her home for Women’s Missionary Union, bridge club, and innumerable gatherings for friends and family. Jana loved to socialize, embodying the proverbial “never met a stranger.” She also loved to travel – her favorite way of introducing herself, other than being a fiercely proud Texan, was telling new friends that her middle name was “go.”
Jana was always particular about her appearance. She was a talented seamstress, making clothing for herself and family throughout her life. She was passionate about shoes and accessories. She was known as “the hat lady” at every church she attended. As stated by author Laura Marie Altom in her dedication for her book, Marrying the Marshall, “…for my new friend and the sharpest dressed T.A. at Nimitz Middle School, Ms. Jana King! Thank you for making me feel at home since the first day we met, and for always being generous with your smiles. You are a treasure I hope to forever keep!”
Jana was predeceased by her mother, father, and brother.
She is survived by her three children: Leigh Ann (Charles) Dugger of Tulsa, Oklahoma; Lizabeth (Steve) Schley of Bangor, Maine; and Bill (Cathy) King of Dexter, Michigan; seven grandchildren: Beth (Joe) Matlock, Katey Barron, and Ginna (Hunter) Hensley, Stephen and Mary Grace Schley, and Douglas and Beverly King; and five great-grandchildren: William and Nathan Matlock, Charley Barron, and Deane and Brody Hensley; nephew, Rob (Debora) King; and countless extended members of the Weaver, Ross, Mayo, King, and Hansard families.
In her later years, the devastating impact of dementia deprived us of Jana’s warmth and vivaciousness. Her family requests that in lieu of flowers, consider donations to the Alzheimer’s Association or other philanthropy seeking treatments for degenerative neurological disease. We are comforted and thankful that she is free from the body that failed her and rejoined with her family and Savior.
In celebration, funeral services were held Friday, December 30, 2022, at Nowlin Anders Funeral Home in De Leon, Texas, with Pastor Rev. Kaiya Kershaw officiating. Interment followed in De Leon Cemetery. Condolences may be offered online at www.nowlinandersfh. com.