Juanita Tharp Kakalec
November 13, 1918 ~ May 24, 2014
JUANITA THARP KAKALEC, age 95, passed away peacefully on May 24, 2014, at her home in Chapel Hill, NC. Beloved wife of the late John Kakalec, she is survived by daughters Donna Jensen and Carol Kohn, son-in-law Harold Kohn, and by grandchildren, Jocelyn, Hunter, Gregory, Lara, and Todd, and twelve great-grandchildren. She is also survived by her sister Ruth Bianco and brother Howard C. Tharp.
Juanita was born in 1918 in LaRue County, KY, to Curtis and Edna Tharp. She moved to Louisville, KY, in 1937, and in 1942, at a Kentucky Derby Party, she met John, a soldier at Fort Knox. They were married on Christmas Eve that same year and settled in Washington, DC, in 1945. They lived in McLean and Great Falls, VA, and in 2003 they moved to Chapel Hill, NC.
Juanita was a talented knitter, seamstress, and quilter, a lover of crossword puzzles, and a passionate follower of politics. She and John took great pleasure in their family, their vegetable garden and in traveling in retirement. Juanita enjoyed the fellowship of McLean Baptist Church and Binkley Baptist Church in Chapel Hill. She is known within her family, and beyond, for her energetic spirit and her homemade apple butter.
Family will receive friends on Wednesday, May 28, 2014, from 6 to 8 pm at the Money and King Funeral Home, 171 Maple Ave. W, Vienna, VA, where a funeral service will be held on Thursday, May 29, 2014, at 10:30 am. Interment following the service at Fairfax Memorial Park, Fairfax, VA.
Funeral Home:
Money & King Funeral Home
171 W. Maple Ave.
Vienna, VA
US 22180
Juanita was born in 1918 in LaRue County, KY, to Curtis and Edna Tharp. She moved to Louisville, KY, in 1937, and in 1942, at a Kentucky Derby Party, she met John, a soldier at Fort Knox. They were married on Christmas Eve that same year and settled in Washington, DC, in 1945. They lived in McLean and Great Falls, VA, and in 2003 they moved to Chapel Hill, NC.
Juanita was a talented knitter, seamstress, and quilter, a lover of crossword puzzles, and a passionate follower of politics. She and John took great pleasure in their family, their vegetable garden and in traveling in retirement. Juanita enjoyed the fellowship of McLean Baptist Church and Binkley Baptist Church in Chapel Hill. She is known within her family, and beyond, for her energetic spirit and her homemade apple butter.
Family will receive friends on Wednesday, May 28, 2014, from 6 to 8 pm at the Money and King Funeral Home, 171 Maple Ave. W, Vienna, VA, where a funeral service will be held on Thursday, May 29, 2014, at 10:30 am. Interment following the service at Fairfax Memorial Park, Fairfax, VA.
Funeral Home:
Money & King Funeral Home
171 W. Maple Ave.
Vienna, VA
US 22180
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Juanita, You taught me some valued lessons on aging, family, connections, and legacy. I enjoyed visiting you along with Herta and other Meadowmont seniors…and I also enjoyed visiting with just you and me. You had great Kentucky stories, Fort Knox and tobacco farming! I got to know you through stories about John, the house you built, your gardening, John’s Eastern church, your trips to Eastern Europe and his VERY large family. Working with Carol on photos of you and your family added to our friendship. You’ll be in my thoughts for many years with smiles!
I am grateful for the opportunity to have been able to help Juanita and her family during the later months of her life. Her spunk and ability to say what she thought is clearly one of her attributes that helped her reach 95. Her amazing family is a model to others with aging family/parents. Thank you for the opportunity.
Farewell Juanita. It saddens me that I will not see you again but I am thankful for the times you cheered our holiday parties with your presence. If I am spared the shingles it will only be due to your persistence that finally resulted in my vaccination.
Carol and Hal, May Juanita’s memory be a blessing to you and your family. There were treasured times. Thinking of you. Jodi and Glenn
I am very grateful for the opportunity Carol allowed me to share with her mother. Ms Juanita was my friend and my Inspiration when I was down and she always saw great potential in me. I love her for that. I’m glad that I have the wonderful memories that we shared together.
Dear Carol, Hal, and all the family, We feel blessed to have had Juanita for our neighbor these past six years.Her passing will leave an unfillable void her on the Oval.
What a blessing for all of us who knew Juanita with the sparkly blue eyes! She always had a few special words for my dog Lucy when we stopped to chat at her home. Carol and Hal, your love for her and your attentive care are such an example for all of us. May you find peace in the happy memories you and your family shared with your beautiful mother. Fondly, Julie
What a blessing for all of us who knew Juanita with the sparkly blue eyes! She always had a few special words for my dog Lucy when we stopped to chat at her home. Carol and Hal, your love for her and your attentive care are such an example for all of us. May you find peace in the happy memories you and your family shared with your beautiful mother. Fondly, Julie
I moved here not quite a year ago but had the good fortune to know Juanita. We loved talking about Makers Mark and I will never play the song again,Juanita, without thinking of her. Blessings to all of you.
We only met Juanita once, at the Fountain Gathering this spring. It was a pleasure to talk to her. We admired the loving and devoted care that Carol and Hal so obviously extended to Juanita. We were inspired by the connections in this family and send them all our blessings.
Carol, Bill and I will hold you all in our thoughts and prayers. Bill and Anne Logan
“Because we loved, there will be tears; Because we laughed, there will be memories; Because they lived, there will be joy” Connie and Ernie Roessler
Knowing Juanita was a pleasure. I wish I had known her my whole life! You knew where you stood with Juanita and she was a good story teller. She had beautiful hair and those blue eyes that shone with light. Juanita will certainly be missed at our church. My loving sympathy to Carol and Hal, and all the family. Thanks to all the caregivers who were so caring and faithful to her.
We will miss you dear Juanita with your great smile and insightful conversation. We hope the pain the family is now experiencing soon mellows into a warm and comforting memory of having been so fortunate to share their lives with you.
Dear Juanitas daughters, grandchildren and great-grandchildren: This is Alan and Letty Ann Shearer. Juanita was our mother Josephines greatest friend. They would talk on the phone for hours, or at least it seemed that way to our father. They first met when they worked for McLean Bank and had so much in common — one from Kentucky, the other from Tennessee. When our father passed away, Juanita told Jo they were both blessed that they were married to their husbands for more than 60 years. The four of them would go to Redskins games, and took a trip to Hawaii. After our father retired, John and Juanita visited Lynchburg many times. Our mother will soon be 92. She enjoys her house and loves going to church every week. May god bless you all.
Sympathy to Juanita’s family. Juanita as a member of Binkley Baptist Church brought engagement and a sparkle to our congregation. It was clear that she cared a great deal about her church and her family. I am blessed to have known her.