Iredell Collins began her earthly journey on June 5, 1942 in Eudora, Arkansas, born to Iredell Keith and Edgar Lee Perry. On Wednesday, June 10, 2026, she completed transitioned to everlasting life, leaving beind a legacy of love, faith, and faithful service to all who knew her.

A woman of deep faith, she accepted Christ at an early age and was baptized at Gospel Temple in Eudora, Arkansas.

The namesake of her beloved mother, Dell was one of eleven siblings. She was fondly called “Sis” by the family. She was always in the middle of the group, providing a helping hand and creating opportunities for togetherness.

In her youth she was an athletic basketball player who gave her brothers and cousins steep competition. At a young age she learned to sew, cook and work alongside her mother who she adored.

She graduated from high school in Eudora, Arkansas, then set out west to join her older brother in California, where she earned her credentials as a cosmetologist. For a time she and her sisters who followed her out to Los Angeles lived together. She found a church home at the Greater Mount Carmel Missionary Baptist Church in Los Angeles, California.

It was in California that she met her husband and lifelong soulmate, Melvin Collins, known to all as “Ham” from Fordyce, Arkansas. The two were united in holy matrimony in September of 1968, and for decades the name “Mel and Dell” has been more than a license plate motto, it has been enduring description. Together they raised their family as Melvin served with honor in the United States Marine Corps, including two tours in The Republic of Vietnam, Philippine Islands and Okinawa, Japan.

In 1982, the family relocated to Fordyce, Arkansas where she lived until her passing. She was a gifted seamstress, a proud business owner of Dell’s Beauty Shop, a church mother, and an active presence in the life of her community. You might have found her walking, running, or mowing her lawn on any given day. She was full of life and never one to slow down.

Dell was an active member of Mount Zion Baptist Church in Thornton, Arkansas under the leadership of J. C. Owens. She was a dynamic and faithful Sunday School teacher at Mount Zion Baptist Church. She was a foundational presence in the kitchen serving, cooking, and delivering with joy.

At Mount Tabor Baptist Church she served as Sunday School Teacher, Adult Choir member, and Second Vice President of the Ouachita District Association Women’s Department. She was a foundational presence in the kitchen serving, cooking, and delivering with joy.

In the community, Dell was a devoted member of the Elegant Ladies Club, founded by Mrs. Ruby Davis, and a proud member of the Little Rock Chapter of the Fordyce Club. She extended kindness freely, a hand, a listening ear, a meal to anyone in need. She took special delight in her young great-grandchildren, whose laughter and life brought her joy.

Dell is survived by her husband of more than 58 years, Melvin Collins of Fordyce, Arkansas; her daughters, Lisa Collins (Amy) of Portland, Oregon and Tina Collins-Overton (Justin) of Murfreesboro, Tennessee; her grandchildren, Robert Collins, Jullian Johnson (Joanna) and Andrew Coxcollins of Portland, Oregon, and Tayllor Johnson Oyewole-Davis (Ademola) of Santa Barbara. California and her great-grandchildren, Kisa (4), Jullian (4), Allora (2), and Ason (10 months); three sisters, Thelmon Perry and Sylvia Perry of Los Angeles, California, and Mildred Perry of Fordyce, Arkansas; two brothers, Edgar L. Perry, Jr. (Ruth) and Calvin Perry (Shelia) of Cleveland, Ohio; one uncle, Richard Keith of San Bernardino, California; and a cherished host of cousins, family, and friends whose lives she touched in ways too numerous to count.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her brothers, Leon Brown and David Perry; and her sisters, Arbunes Jones and Corliss Perry.

Dell loved God and she loved her family. She lived every day she was given.

“Well done, good and faithful servant.”

Funeral services were held at 10:00 a.m., Monday, June 22, 2026 at Greater St. Mark AME Church, Thornton, Arkansas. Interment was held at 12:00 p.m., Tuesday, June 23, 2026 in Hill Cemetery, Eudora, Arkansas.

Services were entrusted to Brown-Williams Funeral Home of Fordyce, Arkansas.