June Arlene Hemphill

June Arlene Hemphill, beloved wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, aunt, and friend died peacefully on February 10, 2024. June will always be remembered for her incredible kindness, quick wit, and deep love and devotion to her family and friends.

June was born on June 21,1926 in Chicago, IL, the second child of Helen and Frank Johnson, five years after her brother, Richard. She lived there for five years before the family moved to Indiana where they lived in several places, moving where there was work for her father who was a traveling salesman during the Depression.

She attended middle and high school in Muncie, IN where she met lifelong friends that she continued to see into their 90’s. She moved to Ft. Wayne, IN before her senior year and graduated from South Side High School. June contributed to the war effort by working at Magnavox soldering headphones worn by military personnel. She attended Miami University in Oxford, OH where she was a member of the Chi Omega sorority and majored in French.

From 1950-1953 June was secretary for the Egyptian Delegation to the United Nations in New York City; a city she loved to visit throughout her life. While there, she was assigned to Paris for six months sparking a lifelong love of travel. After leaving NYC in 1954, June returned home to Ft. Wayne where she met Dixon Hemphill who was there training for his job with General Electric. They married on January 1, 1955.

Through the years, June assisted Dixon with the companies he started and was always involved with helping others. She was an active member of Fairfax United Methodist Church for almost 60 years and volunteered with many of their outreach programs. After raising her four children, June worked as a community liaison for Meals on Wheels, a job she loved deeply.

June is survived by her beloved husband of 69 years, Dixon; their four children Christine Wheeler (Fred), Peter (Elisa), James (Diane) and Susan Howard (Bob); their nine grandchildren Collin Wheeler (Rachel), Ben Wheeler, Kevin Wheeler (Julie), James Hemphill, Lisa Burns (Ryan), Jack Howard, Kyle Howard, Luke Howard, Joshua Hemphill; and two great-grandchildren, Charlie and Riley.

A memorial service will be held on Friday, March 1, 2024 at 11:00 AM at Fairfax United Methodist Church, 10300 Stratford Ave, Fairfax, VA 22030. A private interment will be held for the family at a later date. Donations can be made to UNICEF, March of Dimes, or Fairfax United Methodist Church.