Jean Ann Brooke's Obituary
Jean Ann Brooke was born March 28th 1930 to parents Kenneth Strayer and Christianna (Beaner) Strayer.
She passed away just short of her 91st birthday, on March 11th 2021. She was raised in Johnstown PA, with 5 brothers and a sister. She was the 3rd youngest. Her father Kenneth Strayer owned the Skate Land Roller Rink, so she grew up loving roller skating and even competed in the pairs skating National Skating Championships traveling to Detroit via train. She grew up loving animals, being raised with Great Danes as part of the large family. She graduated from Dale High School in 1948, where she was a member of the band (she played the marching bells) chorus and sextet singing group. In 1950 she attended Draughons Business Institute in Tulsa Oaklahoma. She was working for Gulf Oil Corp in 1950 when she married Wendell Colby Brooke on August 19th 1950. After a honeymoon in New Mexico and Mexico they lived in Tulsa while Wendell finished his senior year at Oklahoma A & M college in Stillwater. They moved to Wilkensburg PA, and Dallas Texas before landing in Yorba Linda CA in 1963. Jean and Wendell raised two daughters Carol Ann Brooke and Colby Jean Brooke. Wendell worked at Autonetics, a division of North American Aviation, and then Orange County in engineering, Jean worked at Cal State University Fullerton as a senior data processing. Jean retired in April 1986. They left CA for Gun Barrel City Texas in the summer of 1987. Jean lived at their house in Gun Barrel City and a Tyler Atria Willow Apartment since 2017. Jean loved going on Riverboat Cruises, a favorite was the Delta Queen. She loved quilting and knitting, painting and square dancing. She loved to cook and was an avid collector of recipes and cookbooks. She would love to try new recipes. She was a very good cook. She loved chocolate, Lorna Dune cookies, watching ice skating on tv and a nice glass of red wine. Jean loved pets and over the years had dogs and cats always in her life. She gave support to the Gun Barrel City and Cedar Creek Lake pet shelters. Jean loved music and some of her favorite singers were Andy Williams, Perry Como, and Wayne Newton, who she met and was photographed with in Las Vegas, in 2007. Her favorite singing group was The Gaithers, an American southern gospel group. Jean was preceded in death by her brothers, John Strayer, Richard (Dick) Strayer, James (Jim) Strayer, Ken Strayer, Tom Strayer, and her husband Wendell Brooke. She is survived by her sister Norma Kirby, Sister in Law Jeanne Gomez, and her children Carol Brooke and Colby Lara and son in law, Robert Lara. Nieces Jan Vena, Kim Strayer Thiehoff, Sue Kirby, nephews Gary Gomez, Rick Gomez, Chuck Gomez, J.R. Strayer, Davy Strayer, Roger Kirby, and many more.
Services are Wed’s March 24th at 2 pm Restland Memorial Park Wildwood Chapel, 13005 Greenville Ave. Dallas Texas 75243.
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