Jan H. (Hemperly) Clayton

Jan Hemperly Clayton of Newburgh passed away on May 5th, 2026 at 3:00 pm in her home, in the presence of her husband, children, and Chaplain Scott Hutchenson. Jan was born on January 3rd, 1955 in Tacoma, Washington to Cecil Hemperly and Marian Boyer Hemperly. During Jan’s father’s service in the U.S. Army as a hospital administrator, they lived in several states and even abroad in Germany until Cecil finished his service and their family settled in Southern Indiana. Jan met Andrew Clayton in 1971, and they were immediately inseparable. They married on July 26th, 1975, and together they celebrated over fifty years of marriage. 

Jan’s interest and warmth for people extended to her degree in Psychology which she pursued at Indiana University and continued at the University of Southern Indiana until her graduation, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree. Jan cherished time with family and cared for her friends and for others. She could speak for hours with anyone, anywhere, and to this point once said “It’s not that I can’t stop talking, it’s that I can’t stop listening.”

Jan mentored several first-time mothers through a program offering aid to pregnant women who lacked support at home, and was a member of the P.E.O. Sisterhood, Chapter AA/IN. Jan was a charter member of the Raintree Quilters’ Guild, an organization created to support sharing quilting techniques among its tight-nit group of members. This organization fostered not only learning, but also friendships that spanned decades of her life as well as many others’. Jan was an active member of the Parent-Teacher’s Association of her children’s schools as well as several book clubs. She loved to include her friends in these groups. A dear friend noted that she was “always on the cutting edge” of what was going on around town that she could get involved in. 

Jan was a wonderful artist with a special interest in drawing and painting, and she was also a talented craftswoman, enjoying needlepoint, quilting, and knitting. Her excitement for art infiltrated her philosophy for life. She told her daughter:  “The great thing about drawing is that you can choose any color you like; you should never worry about making a mistake because that choice could also become a beautiful surprise that you never expected.”

Jan worked at Books-a-Million and Barnes & Noble for over fifteen years, handling special orders for obscure books in Evansville. She found joy in carefully selecting up-and-coming literature, giving customers and employees alike stories that they could cherish. 

Jan is survived by her husband Andrew Clayton; daughter Megan Rose Clayton; son Alexander Matthew Clayton and his wife Ashley Larae Clayton; brother John Hemperly and his wife Mary Hemperly; and her grandchildren Elizabeth Clayton, Soren Clayton and Roland Clayton. 

A Celebration of Life will be held at 5:30 PM on Monday, May 11th, 2026 at Boone Funeral Home, located at 5330 Washington Ave., Evansville, Indiana with Rev. George Purnell officiating.

Friends may visit from 3:00 pm until time of service, Monday, May 11th, 2026 at Boone Funeral Home. 

A Livestream of the service will be available twenty minutes prior to the start of the service. Access to the Livestream can be found by scrolling to the bottom of the obituary and clicking the access link. 

The family would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to the staff of Heart to Heart and Cedarhurst Senior Living for their care. 

In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial contributions be made to: 

PEO Educational Loan Fund, PEO is an organization founded in 1869 which promotes educational opportunities for women. Please indicate her chapter, “AA/IN” at 

https://peo-portal.com/donations?step=0

The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, MJFF is a charitable foundation which supports and funds research for a cure to Parkinson’s Disease and other neurodegenerative diseases, including Lewy Body Dementia. 

https://give.michaeljfox.org/give/421686/#!/donation/checkout

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