Emma "Jody" Jonell Vining

Jody was born in Oklahoma City, OK on November 3, 1940 to J.O. and Avanell Forrester, the first of three children. Her brother Jimmy and sister Carmen weren't born until several years after World War II ended, so she was always the center of attention as a young child.

Jody Forrester graduated from high school in 1958 and began taking classes at Central State College that fall. While attending college, Jody worked at several different part-time jobs. One of those jobs was at a department store, John A. Brown Company in Oklahoma City. It was there that she was introduced to a new employee by the name of Charles Vining who had recently moved to town from Topeka, Kansas. Charles began working as the assistant maintenance man and Jody liked to tell the story of how she would "just happen" to find out where he was working in the store each day and then she would "just happen" to walk by that particular area. The two soon began saying hello and, as the story goes, Charles was up on a ladder fixing something when he built up the courage to ask her out for their first date. Not too many months after that, Charles got down on one knee and asked Jody to marry him. On September 8, 1960, Jody and Charles Vining were wed at the Church of Christ in front of God, family, and friends.

After living in a couple of small apartments, Jody and Charles bought their first home in Moore, OK, and got their first dog together, a black poodle she named Pepe. In May of 1962 they had their first son, Scott, and in October 1964 their second son, Mike. Jody was a great "stay at home" Mom. She read books to her children, taught them to read and write, took them to church, and always participated in school activities, cub scouts, little league sports, etc., anything her young boys were interested in. After moving to Houston, TX in the early 1970s, Jody continued to share her abundant love with the children she worked with as a teacher's aide at a local elementary school.

Jody had an artistic flair and took several cake decorating classes, making beautiful cakes for everyone in the family. She worked part-time for a florist when they moved to Southern California in the early 1980's and always enjoyed changing her decor to celebrate the various seasons and holidays. She even started her own company, Creative Expressions by Jody, where she made and sold beautiful holiday wreaths and other decorative items.

Shopping. If you knew Jody very well, or even just a little, you know she loved to shop. From Dillards to Dollar Tree, there was always something to shop for. She was not a big exercise fanatic, but take her to the mall and away she would go! Jody was always very thoughtful and enjoyed finding birthday cards, knick-knacks, anything with a rabbit on it, and a variety of different treasures to share with others. As she got older and walking became more difficult, she discovered the Home Shopping Channel...Jody loved shopping.

She was a great storyteller too and could recall vivid details about not only the different places she and Charles visited, but also all the restaurants they ate at along the way. Together in their small RV they visited all 48 contiguous states, balancing each trip out with approximately the same number of nights in hotels as they spent in the RV. From the Rose Bowl Parade in Los Angeles, the Macy's Parade in New York City, sandy beaches in Florida, flowers in Holland, MI, a multitude of National Parks...the list goes on and on. Jody and Charles were very blessed in so many ways and made it a point to experience as much of our beautiful country as possible.

Jody was an active member of First Christian Church in Plano and enjoyed being part of "The Seekers" Sunday School class there. She also attended many events with Charles and The Plano Masonic Lodge and Shrine. Our family would like to thank both of those organizations for all of the exceptional love and kindness they showed Jody both before and after Charles went to be with Our Lord on April 24, 2024. We'd also like to thank their wonderful "Super Hero" neighbors on Peggy Lane and all of the caring people that helped her at Solstice Senior Living Center in Plano. No passage about Jody would be complete without mentioning three of her dearest friends; Ruth, Shirley, and Sue - she loved all of you and cherished your friendships.

She was a very sweet person with an equally huge sweet tooth. Jody loved to laugh, read books, play dominoes, eat Tino's Too cheese enchiladas and guacamole, watch soap operas with her little dog Mitzi on her lap, spend time with friends and family, and so much more.

Jody is survived by her sons, Scott Vining and wife, Rose; Mike Vining and wife, Linda, niece Brandy Binkley and son, Sam, sister-in-law Beth Fletcher, grandchildren Samantha and Sierra Melomo, cousins, friends, neighbors, caretakers, and her countless Brothers and Sisters in Jesus Christ.

Many people had a really good Mom, our family got lucky and had a great one.

Thank you for celebrating Jody's amazing life with us. She will forever live on in our hearts and into eternity with Our Lord in Heaven.

A Celebration of Life will be held at Ted Dickey Funeral Home, Chapel, 2128 18th Street, Panon, Texas 75074, on April 24, 2026, at 2:00 pm. A brief inurnment will immediately follow the Celebration of Life across the street at Plano Mutual Cemetery.