Vedia Pankey

Vedia Pankey, age 97, of Burlington, Wisconsin (formerly of Bay, AR) passed from this life into heaven, surrounded by several loving family members on October 22, 2025. She was born the oldest of four girls to the late Orville Gammill and Dizzie Balentine Gammill on September 30, 1928, in Onia, AR. She was a member of Grace Missionary Baptist Church in Jonesboro, where she taught many children throughout the years in the Tiny Tots class and attended faithfully until health concerns caused her to move to Burlington, WI, to live with her daughter and family, where she resided and attended Union Grove Baptist Church in Union Grove, WI. Vedia was a very loving and friendly godly woman, loving mother and grandmother, who was loved by almost everyone she met, and she truly loved and appreciated everyone she met, and never met a stranger. “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints” Psalm 116:15

Vedia worked hard all of her life, including hauling rock, picking cotton, and chopping cotton. Her first job was at Singer Sewing in Trumann, AR, where, while working there, she entered and won a beauty contest and where she met the love of her life for almost 60 years, Charles Pankey, who preceded her in death on January 25, 2018. She also worked at TG&Y in the Indian Mall and Trumann locations in fabrics and notions. She and Charles also worked together at Jonesboro Public Schools and Bay Public Schools as custodians after retiring from previous jobs and retired from the school system.

Vedia enjoyed attending church and Bible study so much and had a great love for her Jesus as she said and being with God’s people, especially ladies that met for lunch at one of her favorite restaurants in Union Grove, WI, Mulberry’s, where she was treated more like family instead of a patron and loved their chicken rice soup and was gifted it numerous times during health issues. She also enjoyed making quilts and sewing, and gifted at least two quilts to her grandchildren and many more to numerous others, many with the help of family members and her dear friend Erma Looney. She also enjoyed cooking for family and others, like college students from ASU Missionary Baptist Student Fellowship, whom she would open her home to and feed the students. Some of her specialties were fried okra, fried cornbread, yeast rolls, candied sweet potatoes, various fruit fried pies, and baked many delicious pecan pies. She also enjoyed gardening and canned and froze many fruits and vegetables. She loved being with family and traveling. She traveled with her sister and nephew, and niece to the Ark Encounter/Creation Museum, even after already having been there. She also enjoyed traveling with her daughter and family and dogs by RV to vacation destinations of Florida Keys, Banff National Park in Canada and Canadian Ice Fields, Glacier National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Mount Rushmore, and Grand Tetons and numerous other places, even camping with church family friends two weeks before her passing telling stories around the campfire about days when she was growing up to children and others. She loved life and lived it to the fullest for her Lord until her Jesus called her home, even up to riding in a 1929 New Standard open cockpit biplane at the age of 95 at a church picnic.

Vedia is survived by her son Barry (Pam) Pankey and daughter Tammy (Alan) Brown; four grandchildren, Zac (Addie) Pankey, Jacob (Abby) Pankey, Lindsey (Mason) Kelley, and Leslie Brown. She is also survived by her sisters Cledia Branscum, Dean Rains, and Velma (Kevin) Rainbolt, and Honorary sister/friend Erma Looney; sisters in law Norma Conatser and Shirley (Loyal) Wrinkle, and numerous nephews and nieces and great nephews and great nieces and other family and many friends.

Visitation will be at the Emerson Funeral Home chapel on October 31, 2025, from 5-7 pm, and the funeral services will be held at Grace Missionary Baptist Church on November 1, 2025, at 1:00 pm. Burial will follow at Pine Hill Cemetery. Bro. Verlon Wood and Bro. Danny Bradley will officiate in Jonesboro, and her pastor in Wisconsin, Dr. Rich Schmidt in Union Grove, will officiate at a memorial service there later.

In lieu of flowers, please send donations to ASU MBSF in care of Grace Missionary Baptist Church, 3930 Aggie Rd, Jonesboro, AR 72405.