Janet Carole Huntsman

Janet Carole Huntsman passed away on Monday, October 25, 2025, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She was born on February 11, 1944, in Bauxite, Arkansas, to Charles Leslie Bell and Rebecca Monroe Bell. Janet graduated from Bauxite High School in 1962 and earned her accounting degree from the University of Arkansas in 1965. In 1963, she married her high school sweetheart, Ted Eugene Huntsman. They were married until his death in 2010 and together raised two children, Megan Samantha Sukonick of Weatherford, Texas, and Wade Andrew Huntsman of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Janet began her career in Little Rock, where she was told she was the first female accountant hired by a major accounting firm in the city. She later co-founded Huntsman Trading Company with her husband, Ted, and served as the operational and financial foundation of the company, which became a highly successful cattle feed ingredient trading business. Most of Janet’s adult life was spent in Springdale, Arkansas. She was a devoted member of First United Methodist Church of Springdale for 50 years, and she gave her time to a number of service and community efforts, including Tri-T, the Bread of Life, and Cub Scouts, where she served as a den mother. Janet was a passionate Razorback fan, a love she inherited from her father. For more than 30 years, she was a familiar face at Arkansas football and men’s and women’s basketball games. She was a decades long supporter of the University of Arkansas and of the Burlsworth Foundation. She is survived by her children, Megan and Wade; her granddaughters, Margaret Carrell Huntsman and Amelia Grace Huntsman; her daughter-in-law, Susan Huntsman; her son-in-law, Dave Sukonick; her brother-in-law, Roger Huntsman; her nephew, Shannon Huntsman; her sister-in-law Mary Lynn Bell; her niece Shaneen Tuley; her beloved cousin Viva Louise Dains; her devoted friend Kathryn Stott; and the entire Williamson Family of Springdale that adopted Janet after the passing of her husband. She was proceeded in death by her parents, husband, and brother, Charles Wayne Bell. Visitation will be held at Sisco Funeral Chapel in Springdale on Thursday, October 30, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. Funeral services will take place at First United Methodist Church of Springdale on Friday, October 31, at 1:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to The Bread of Life food pantry through First United Methodist Church of Springdale. The family also welcomes stories and memories of Janet at JanetHuntsmanStories@gmail.com.

Janet Carole Huntsman

February 11, 1944 - October 25, 2025