Edith Elizabeth Wheeler Havens

Edith, known for her vivid imagination and status as master playmate to her grandchildren, was born Dec. 19, 1938, to Johnnie Wheeler and Lorena Foster Wheeler in Tanner Williams, Ala. Throughout her 77 years, Edith developed a feisty spirit and talents for painting, sketching, poetry, and sewing her own clothes. She had a fondness for crossword puzzles, Westerns, and birdwatching. Even into her later years, her adventurous nature led her on exciting four-wheeler rides to the creek and late nights staying up and laughing with her family. Despite all she had seen and done, Edith repeatedly said her children and grandchildren were her greatest achievement. She could often be found in the floor, making funny faces and voices to entertain her young comrades. Through her silly songs, rhymes, and riddles, she was a living embodiment of the term “young at heart.” She still giggled and blushed like a school girl when her husband said he knew he’d only be married once, “so I married the prettiest girl I could find.” She is survived by her loving husband of 61 years, Henry Havens; daughters Esther Cassity and Shannon Havens; sons Howard Havens and Raymond Havens; siblings Mary Bell Murphy, Gladys Fowler, Barbara Havens, Albert Wheeler, Carl “Peewee” Wheeler, and Jimmy Wheeler; 11 grandchildren; 16 great-grandchildren; one great-great grandchild; many beloved nieces and nephews; and her church family. On Sundays, she could be found tapping her foot along to the hymns at Gospel Lighthouse Holiness Church, where she was a longtime and loyal member who had a knack for encouraging new Christians. Edith looked forward to her weekly family dinners and was famous for her Thanksgiving dressing and strawberry-fig preserves. She also strongly believed in the healing powers of a good steak. Edith was preceded in death by her parents; her brothers, Price Wheeler, John “Bully” Wheeler, William “Pistol” Wheeler, and Ernest Wheeler; her sister, Ruth Dearmon; and her baby daughter, Patricia Anne. Visitation will be Sunday at Radney Funeral Home on Dauphin Street from 5-8 p.m. The funeral service will be held Monday at 11 a.m. at Gospel Lighthouse Holiness Church on Old Shell Road. She will be interred at Spring Hill Memorial Gardens. Online condolences may be offered at www.radneyfuneralhome-mobile.com.