Janet Sue Hann Heckathorn, 84, of Fayetteville, Arkansas passed away peacefully at her home and surrounded by her loving family on September 10, 2026.
Janet was born on May 20, 1942, in Herington, Kansas, the fourth of five daughters born to Kermit and Callie Hann.
In 1960, she graduated from Winfield, Kansas, High School. While there, she met and fell in love with one Donal (Don) Heckathorn who would become the love of her life, as well as her business partner for the better part of the next seven decades.
Don and Janet briefly tried the long-distance thing when Don moved to Fayetteville in 1961 to help his dad on a construction job. After moping around while missing Janet for the first three weeks, Don abruptly decided to drive back to Winfield over a long holiday weekend and convinced her to elope with him. They were wed on July 4, 1961, after which he returned to Fayetteville with Janet, and they never looked back.
In addition to being a great wife to Don and mother to Donnie and Tricia, Janet proved to also be quite the entrepreneur. Starting in 1961 along with Don, Janet was the co-founder/owner, matriarch, and “mother hen” of Heckathorn General Contractors, which was operated out of their home until construction success and other business ventures led them to relocate. They went on to become a northwest Arkansas institution by building a multitude of commercial properties throughout the entire states of Arkansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma, most of which still stand today.
Upon their retirement from the construction business in 2013, Janet left a legacy as a hard-working hero and protector for the hundreds of Heckathorn employees over 52 successful years.
Despite her busy professional life, Janet still found time to take food to many of her elderly neighbors and served as homeroom mother at Asbell Elementary school for both Donnie and Tricia.
Janet also had a non-stop sense of humor and could always be counted on to draw a laugh. One of her more endearing moments was when she jokingly mooned the entire FHS flag line from her living room window while Tricia and her classmates practiced their routine at the Heckathorn house which drew uproarious laughter and amusement from the entire flag line team, including Tricia.
Janet was preceded in death by her parents and her sisters Lila Hann Burley, Roetta Hann Carter, and Carol Hann Kelly.
She is survived by her loving husband of 65 years, Donal (Don) Heckathorn Sr., her son Donal (Donnie) Heckathorn Jr. of Fayetteville, her daughter Tricia Heckathorn-Jackson (Mark) of Lowell, her sister Connie Hann Pappan of Wichita, Kansas, and many nieces and nephews, all of whom she loved very dearly.
A visitation will be held at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, at Moore’s Chapel. The funeral service will follow directly after at noon.