Juanita Ellen Mitcham, 97, of Cave Springs, formally of Pine Bluff, peacefully passed away on Friday, July 22, 2022, in Rogers. She was born on December 26, 1924, in Golden, Mississippi to the late Edward Martin Jordan and Elenore Miller Jordan. She married Edwin Elton Mitcham on September 20, 1947.  Ed and Juanita were married for over 50 years before he passed away in 2001.  During their 50 years together, they had one daughter, Pamela, who went to be with the Lord on August 10, 2020 at the age of 73.  Pamela was their pride and joy and they traveled extensively with her throughout her educational years.  Juanita was a life-long Christian and a member of First Baptist Church.

Juanita worked for K-Mart and loved her job, but she too looked forward to enjoying her retirement years with Ed.  When she retired, she and Ed continued their love of travel, and you could find them in their camper trailer in state parks reaching across Missouri, Arkansas and Oklahoma.  When Juanita wasn't camping, she enjoyed spending her time painting, writing poetry and making jewelry.  She had such a creative spirit and had an incredible imagination too!  Juanita and Ed spent most of their retired days going to crafts fairs where they would display and sell their beautiful handmade wooden crafts.  They both took great pride in their work, but mostly loved each other and just enjoyed their time together.  Juanita was not the best cook, because she usually tried to cook too fast in order to get to other things!  She did, however, have a signature item that her grand kids loved, fried (burnt) okra.  During the hottest summer days, you could find her in the living room drinking an ice-cold Coke, snacking on an Almond Joy candy bars while she watched the "Days of Our Lives" on television.  During the summers, Juanita also grew an abundant garden of tomatoes, potatoes, green beans and, you guessed it, okra.  Juanita leaves behind a legacy of beautiful memories, funny stories, and irreplaceable experiences for her family.

She is survived by her son-in-law, Imants Krievans of Cave Springs; grandchildren, Robin Aprea and her husband Mark, Holly Chadick and her husband Brent, Kyle Krievans and his wife Sydney, all of Cave Springs; and five great grandchildren Logan, Ella, Autumn, Beau, and Brett.

A graveside service will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, July 30, at Memorial Park Cemetery in Pine Bluff, with Pastor Paul Williams of First Baptist Church of White Hall officiating.