Juanetta Ethel Whitcomb

Private graveside services were held for Juanetta on 22 May 2023 under the direction of Baggerley Funeral Home, Edmond OK. Interment was in Rose Hill Burial Park, Oklahoma City.

Juanetta was born August 11, 1929 in Claremore, Oklahoma, the only child of Alonzo and Ruth (Moore) Willbanks.

During the Depression years, Juanetta’s family lived in various communities around Oklahoma before settling in Shawnee where she graduated from high school. At the end of WWII, Juanetta became a young bride and the mother of two children.

In later years, she completed a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology at Central State University, and she earned a Master’s degree in Social Work at the University of Oklahoma. Juanetta retired from the Veteran’s Administration Hospital in Oklahoma City, where she spent most of her professional career as a social worker assisting patients and their families.

While working at the VA Hospital, she met Dr. Walter Whitcomb, former director and chief of Rehab Medicine, a good man whose research and insight contributed much to the field of medicine. They married in 1988 and enjoyed 25 years together before his death in January 2013.

Juanetta was talented in many areas. She played clarinet in the Shawnee High School band and later sang baritone with the Oklahoma City Chapter of Sweet Adelines International in the 1960’s and 1970’s. While singing with the Oklahoma City Chorus, she also sang in several award-winning barbershop quartets, including the Stardusters and Satin Sounds. Competitions allowed her to travel and sing in various places around the country, including Carnegie Hall.

Juanetta pursued other activities through the years including sewing, collecting gems and minerals, photography, coin collecting, raising show cats and oil painting. She enjoyed home decorating and was skillful in creating lovely surroundings. She had a flair for writing, and her talent for oil painting was evident in the many landscapes and floral paintings she completed.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.baggerley.com for the Whitcomb family.