Arbutus "Jean" (Blackburn) Higdon

Arbutus “Jean” Higdon, 79, of Otwell (Iva area), gained her angel wings on Friday, February 26, 2021 at the home of her daughter. She was born October 28, 1941 to the late Lonnie and Ollie (Jenne) Blackburn in Petersburg. She was one of ten children.

She met her husband, James A. Higdon, while riding around with some friends in early 1959. They married later that year and were together for 35 years before his death. They had five children together. She was a stay at home mom, working very hard with five children to care for. She loved to garden and canning fruits and vegetables. She looked forward to spring time and going mushroom hunting. She always loved her flowers and planted many varieties over the years. She always had her humming bird feeders full and loved to watch them for many hours of enjoyment. Family holidays and cookouts were something she always loved. She would get up at the crack of dawn to go down to her wild blackberry patch and by mid-morning have her basket full and ready to bake a cobbler for supper dessert. She could cook anything. She loved spending time with her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. She never met a dog she didn’t like, especially her Beagle Max and her ‘grand dog’ Dandy.

She is survived by four children, Brenda (Melton) Stilwell of Petersburg, Roger (Kim) Higdon of Loogootee, Charles (Mary Thrasher) Higdon of Otwell, and Jerry Higdon of Iva; grandchildren, Amanda Woods, Clint (Devin) Lloyd, Shaun (Melanie) Beckett, Jessica Higdon, Doug (Harley) Williams, Dustin (Brittany) Williams, and Dalton Higdon; great grandchildren, Chloe Kelly, Oliver and Jameson Lloyd, Kateri and Elias Beckett, Ezra Higdon, Rhyder and Easton Williams, Sophie, Weston, and Elizah Williams; sisters, Alice Prior of Huntingburg and Barbara Huffman of Otwell; brother, Jerry (Fredia) Blackburn of Ft. Mohave, AZ; and sister in law, Pauline Higdon of Louisville, Ky.

She is preceded in death by her parents and husband, James A. Higdon; an infant son, Robert Dale Higdon in 1976; brothers, Kenneth Blackburn and Rentice and Prentice (twins) and Alvin Blackburn; and her sisters, Donella Cummins and Shirley McClanahan.

Services will take place 1 PM EST on Saturday, March 6, at Harris Funeral Home in Petersburg with visitation from 10 AM until service time. She will be laid to rest at Iva Cemetery and Chaplain Cindy Lagle will be officiating. Masks are required for services. Harris Funeral Home is entrusted with care.

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