Clella Northern Perkins joined our Lord on July 22, 2020 at the age of 97. She was the devoted and loyal wife of Kenneth Perkins for 64 years until his death in 2006. Mother of five; Gary, James, David, Cecil and Brenda. Her sons David and Cecil preceded her in death. Grandmother of six; Carrie; Kip, Lorrie, Casey, Josh and Paul. Greatgrandmother of twelve; Ethan, Xavier, Lucas, Christopher, Chase, Garrett, Aidan, Eliza, Eliana, Solan, Dylan and Heidi. AND Great Greatgrandmother of four; Faith, Aubrey, Olivia and Christian
Born March 17, 1923. Clella was the fourth child of eight for William and Lulu (Johnson) Northern. They were a farm family in rural Lake City, Arkansas. William Northern passed away in 1938 from complications of mustard gas exposure during WWI. Lulu, or Mama Northern as she was affectionately known, used his military death benefit to move her three sons and five daughters to Jonesboro, Arkansas and declared that her children would not grow up to the hard life of farming OR marry farm boys!
As a teen Clella, was a happy and attractive young woman and soon caught the eye of Kenneth Perkins — a young farm boy with big ambitions. Thus started their life together. While Kenneth trained military pilots in the early days of WWII, Clella worked as an actual “Rosie the Riveter” on the B-25 Martin Aircraft line in Memphis, TN. Soon after, they started their family. Through the years they lived in a number of communities from Arkansas to Mississippi, Florida, Arizona, Tennessee and Georgia while Kenneth first pursued a career in teaching, then as a high school principal, and ultimately as an aerospace education consultant. Clella’s farm boy took her to see the country with the growing family in tow.
They were devoted and active members of the Church of Christ in every community they lived. The church was integral to their social and spiritual life together. A creative person, Clella was first devoted to raising her family, but later in life she was able to pursue her artistic side with crafts, painting, flower arranging and had a particular passion for gardening. Always one with an eye for a bargain, she had her own craft and second-hand treasures shop for a time.
Left with wonderful memories of Clella Perkins is a beautiful circle of family, daughters-in-law, nieces, nephews, and friends. Her smile and light will be with us always.
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