Jc

Mandrell

John Calvin "JC" Mandrell, 101, of Blanchard, died Friday, January 31, 2025, in Ardmore.  He was born in Kingston, Marshall County, Oklahoma, on January 18, 1924.  He was one of twelve children in the farm family of Elijah "Lige" and Nora Ann (Thoma) Mandrell.  JC's father also worked as a carpenter and builder.  Besides raising a large family, his mother was an evangelist.

JC met Margaret Ruth Miller at a barn dance when he and a friend changed dance partners.  They married on June 28, 1942, in Mountain View, Oklahoma and enjoyed 70 years together before she passed away.  Margaret worked as a secretary.  They had three sons; Tommy Ray and Johnny Lee, who are both deceased.  Tommy has one son, Darrell, wife, Julie, sons, Jeff and Dylan Mandrell of Arizona.  Billy Don and his wife, Naomi, reside in Blanchard, and Pastor in Dibble at Word of Life Ministries.  They have fifteen children.  To complete JC's five-generation family, he has sixteen grandchildren, thirty-six great grandchildren, and twenty-four great-great grandchildren.  We would add to those all the amazing caregivers in the Ardmore Veterans Center and Word of Life Church, who consider him "Papa".  He loved children.

He attended public school in Cowden, and Mountain View.  He received his high school diploma on December 23, 2001.  Oklahoma provided a program for WW2 veterans who had to cut their education short because of military service.  He received training in the Civilian Conservation Corp, in Paradox, Colorado.  He received certification in Heat, Air, and Plumbing in Oklahoma City.  He worked as a farmer, plumber and hardware salesman.  When he moved to Blanchard, he started Jay's Pump service and repaired water well pumps.  His moto was, "Where Jay goes, water flows."  Once, when asked what his ministry gift was, he said, "I give people water."  He loved helping people.  In his early work life, he drove a wagon team hauling milk from dairies, and repairing windmills.

He was always very active in church, attending Mountain View Pentecostal Holiness, Linn Ave Pentecostal Holiness in Oklahoma City and Word of Life Ministries in Dibble.  He served as Deacon in every church he attended and was a lifetime Deacon at Word of Life Ministries.  He was also treasurer, paying church bills from his own pocket when donations were low.  He aided in building several church buildings.

Quail hunting, welding crafts and pen and pencil collecting were his hobbies.  He and Magaret enjoyed the local auctions and doing garage sales.  He loved Christmas.  He played Santa every year until he moved into the Veterans Center.  The most important trip taken in his lifetime was to Illinois to research the Mandrell family tree.  That's where he discovered that he and Barbara Mandrell were cousins.  Pinto beans, fried potatoes with onions and fried chicken were some of his favorite foods.  At the Veterans Center it was oatmeal.  His constant question was, "Is it time to eat?"

He served in the U.S. Army during WW2 in France, and Germany.  He was a hospital corp man and did vehicle maintenance.  In appreciation for his service, he received a citation from President Harry Truman, JC celebrated his 100th Birthday in 2024.  He received a Centennial Birthday Letter from both Governor Kevin Stitt and President Donald Trump.  On January 17, 2025, JC had his 101 Birthday celebration.

He is preceded in death by his wife, Margaret, sons, Tommy Ray, and Johnny Lee, his parents Lige and Nora, all of his siblings, and his special little granddaughter, Tonnie, who could sweet talk him into whatever she wanted.

His words of wisdom to the younger generation: "If you can't afford it, don't buy it.  It's not what you make, it's what you save.  When someone cheats you, tell yourself, If they can live with it, I can live without it."

Funeral service will be held at 3:00 P.M., Friday, February 7, 2025, at the Eisenhour Funeral Home Chapel in Blanchard.  Private burial will be held in Mountain View Cemetery in Mountain View, Oklahoma.  Arrangements are under the direction of Eisenhour Funeral Home.  Online obituary and guestbook are available at www.eisenhourfh.com.