Emma Jean Phelps

     Emma Jean Phelps passed away on November 28, 2022 in Sister Bay, WI after an extended illness. Emma Jean was born on April 12, 1934 to Lucille and James Vernon Ingram in Durham, NC. She married Gerald (Jerry) L. Phelps in 1954 and they lived together for more than 50 years until his passing in 2006. She graduated from Bethesda High School in Durham, NC and worked for many years at Duke Power and for the Yellow Pages as a salesperson. Later in life she and her husband turned a jewelry making hobby into a small business that they operated together. She was an active and committed volunteer as a voter registration advocate and with the Contact Suicide Hotline. 

     In 2020, Emma Jean moved to Fish Creek, WI with her son Jerry and his wife Elizabeth. She enjoyed being on a big adventure which took her away from her hometown of more than 80 years. She embraced the move with the same spunk and determination with which she lived every day of her life. 

     Emma Jean loved to travel, read, and watch and feed wildlife which were regular visitors to every home she ever lived in. Another favorite past-time was hiding and eating Kit-Kats and playfully threatening to fire her caregivers if they told anyone. In the last year of her life she was a champion bingo player at the Good Samaritan Society Scandia Village where she received excellent and compassionate care. 

     Emma Jean is survived by her daughter Jeanie Derr and son-in-law Kelly Derr of Sugar Grove, NC; her son Jerry Phelps and daughter-in-law Elizabeth Galecke of Fish Creek, WI; granddaughters Erin Derr Dillenschneider, Sara Derr and Emily Phelps Smith; three great-grandchildren; her nephews Ric Cooley and Greg Phelps; nieces Judy Ingram Moore, Elaine Ingram Watkins, Luann Sykes, Karen Phelps Welch, and Carol Phelps Rodgers Davis; life-long friends Ann Allen and Shirley Dantzler; and many other dear friends and relatives. 

     In lieu of flowers, the family asks that friends and relatives consider donating to one of the following organizations:  Good Samaritan Scandia Village (10560 Applewood Road, Sister Bay, WI 54234) or Open Door Bird Sanctuary (4114 County Road I, Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235).

     Casperson Funeral Home is assisting the family. Sign online guestbook and offer condolences at www.caspersonfuneralhome.com.

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