Frances Jean Metheny
1946 – 2025
Frances Jean Metheny was born on March 11, 1946 to Leon and Louise Hardin in Abington Township, Pennsylvania. She was the baby of the family which included her sister, DeeDee, and her brother, Bobby. Leon Hardin was a pilot in the U.S. Army Air Corps and Air Force, so the family moved constantly as Jean was growing up. The family lived in sixteen different cities by the time Jean entered college, so she grew up as a shy child and her siblings were her best friends.
Jean was baptized at the age of 15 at the Church of Christ in Fall's Church, VA where she and her dad were active members in the church choir. Singing was a lifelong love. In 1964, Jean graduated from the Central High School in Bushey Park, Hertfordshire, just outside of London, England. Her father was on assignment to NATO at the time and Jean studied very hard to earn a place in the National Honor Society. The family moved to Arlington, VA soon after Jean's graduation and she went to work at the U.S. State Department as a stenographer. After working in Washington, D.C., Jean moved to Oklahoma in 1967 to begin school at Oklahoma Christian where she sought an "Mrs." degree but instead, graduated magna cum laude with a B.S. in Elementary Education in 1970.
After college, Jean worked at Citizen's Bank in Edmond, OK. It was there that she met Ron Metheny, who owned a shoe repair shop just a few doors down from the bank. Ron made sure to visit the bank regularly as he was able to flirt with Jean and eat the cashew nuts she kept on her desk. Ron and Jean began dating in August of 1971 and were married at Wilshire Church of Christ on December 7th of the same year.
Ron and Jean were married for 45 happy years and had four children: Rondal, Elizabeth, Kathryn and Beau. Jean worked as a legal secretary for the Oklahoma Department of Human Services Legal Division for over 20 years. After Jean retired in 2008, she took care of Ron during his long battle with cancer and she held his hand as he passed away in February of 2017.
Jean loved her family beyond measure, especially her four grandchildren. Jean loved to read – in her lifetime she read most, if not all, of the books written about the JFK assassination and she was certain she knew who really killed Kennedy. Jean loved going to the water aerobics class at OC and made many good friends there. Jean also devoted herself to volunteer work at In Search of the Lord's Way where she graded Bible correspondence courses.
Jean passed away on Friday, March 7th, 2025 doing what she loved – reading in her comfy recliner. She was predeceased by her parents, Leon and Louise Hardin, her husband, Ron Metheny, and her brother, Robert Leon Hardin. Jean leaves behind her sister Dee Dee Muckelroy, her sisters-in-law Norma Metheny and Mary Sue Hardin, and her children and grandchildren: her son, Ron Metheny (Kari Hayes) and their children Kylee Metheny, Robbie Metheny, Kael Hayes, Miah Hayes, and Hanna Hayes; her daughter Elizabeth Metheny Fisher (Josh); her daughter Kathryn Metheny; and her son Beau Metheny (Rachelle) and their sons, Mason and Maverick.
In lieu of flowers, the Metheny family asks that donations be made to the ministry at In Search of the Lord's Way by clicking here.
Visitation will take place from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 13th with family present at Matthews Funeral Home.
Services will be at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, March 14th at Edmond Church of Christ, 801 S Bryant Ave, Edmond, Oklahoma 73034. Interment will follow at Memorial Park Cemetery.
To view the service livestream please follow this link: https://www.youtube.com/live/YvN1fOB6T-I .