Jane Whitworth Rankin

Jane Whitworth Rankin, 94, of Phoenix, AZ, peacefully entered into the Kingdom of Heaven on October 24, 2018. She was born on August 22, 1924, in Kansas City, Missouri, to Allen C. and Lillian V. Kinzer Whitworth. Her family moved to Wewoka, Oklahoma when she was 2, where she was raised. She attended Wewoka High School and studied Spanish because her father was a friend of the football coach who taught that class. She continued her study of languages at the University of Oklahoma, and graduated in 1946. After graduation, she moved to Dallas, Texas, where she became an American Airlines Reservation agent, focusing on Latin American customers. She was the subject of a John Philip Falter painting which was used to create an American Airlines advertisement, and printed in the April 17, 1950 edition of Life Magazine. She joined Pan American World Airways in 1948 as a flight attendant, was stationed in Houston and flew on Central and South American routes, using her language skills. It was there that she met her husband, Calvin Greene Rankin, who was a pilot for Pan Am. She left Pan Am in 1954, married, and settled down in Coral Gables, Florida with her husband, raising two children. When Cal died unexpectedly in a plane crash, she went back to school at the University of Miami and studied bookkeeping. She worked for several companies, including the Miami Dolphins, Price Waterhouse, The Allen Morris Company, and the award winning advertising agency, Samuel B. Crispin and Associates. She also found time to be a blood donor, volunteer to translate books into Spanish for Reading for The Blind, and be a Girl Scout cookie chairman. She collected and tended orchids throughout her life, enjoyed quilting, and was a Sunday school teacher for many years. She had a passion for traveling, and drove across the USA many times, visited South and Central America, Europe, and Asia. She had been inside the Arctic Circle and once flew on the Concorde. Her favorite country was England and she loved all things British. She retired in 2000, at the age of 75, and moved to Arizona to be near her daughter. She will be remembered for her friendly and outgoing nature, and her warm smile. A remarkable life; a remarkable woman.

Jane is survived by her daughter, Barbara G. Rankin, of Phoenix, and several nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, her son Robert Allen Rankin, her brother Forrest Kinzer Whitworth, and her sister, Ann Whitworth McDaniel. The family would like to thank her wonderful caregivers at Ahwatukee Gardens Assisted Living (especially Marie, Gilbert, and Seini) and the incredible support provided by Hospice of the Valley (especially Maura, Renee, Angela, and Heather). We could not have made this journey without you. You have been a blessing. A celebration of Jane’s life will be held at 11AM on Saturday, January, 26, 2019, at Mountain View Lutheran Church, located at 11002 S. 48th St. in Phoenix. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts in her name may be made to Hospice of the Valley, 1510 E. Flower St. Phoenix, AZ 85014 (www.hov.org).