Ruth Jeanette Webster Reese
Grandma, I have missed you for years and I will miss you for all my years to come. Anyone who knew you knew your servant’s heart and your smile. You didn’t keep it from anyone, I hope I can remedy that in my life to come — to offer my smile to everyone I meet and serve others. To let go of my ego and idea of personality and identity, and be a friend to all.
How fitting that we celebrated your life on All Saints Day, our own saint!
You are sitting in Glory with the King, reunited with lost babies, your parents, and your brother, fully restored leaving your broken body behind. The rest of us know Christ because of the foundation that you set for our family with Grandpa Darrell, and we will meet you there someday. We know what blessing is because you made sure that we knew we were not blessed because of who we were, but because of Jesus. We know what marriage should look like because you and Grandpa Darrell set the standard. We know what intercession for your family looks like because you kneeled as long as you could and prayed for us, because when you couldn’t kneel to pray you still prayed for us, because when your mind didn’t quite work right, you still prayed for us with Grandpa Darrell. I’m sure you will continue to pray and intercede for us until we join you.
You were my favorite person on this planet. I am honored to have sat by you in the last ten days of your life, to hold your hand, pray with you, to speak the names of all of your descendants, to sing so poorly for you, to read Psalms 1, 118, 103, 84, Ephesians, Philippians to you, to kiss your brow and wipe your tears — to return to you any ounce of the care and love that you graciously poured into my life.
I love you forever, Gma. You are 10 feet tall, and the greatest.
The Obituary that my dad and his siblings put together to honor their mother, my grandma:
August 5, 1933 - October 31, 2020
Ruth Jeanette (Webster) Reese was born on August 5, 1933 to Reo and Ruth (Van Valkenburgh) Webster in Blackwell, Oklahoma. She moved to her heavenly home on October 31, 2020 from her home near Nardin at the age of 87.
Jeanette graduated from Deer Creek High School and attended Oklahoma A&M University. She interrupted her studies to marry Darrell Reese on July 11, 1952. They began their life together on a farm north of Nardin where they have lived their entire life farming and operating a dairy. They have five children; Rod, Terre, Max, Jim, and Ken.
Jeanette was very active in the church as an organist, pianist, teacher, cook, mission volunteer, and generally, a saint all of her life. Even in her sixties she and Darrell led the church youth group so that kids would be served. Nothing pleased her more than seeing her grands and great grands, or for that matter anyone else’s. She loved children. She was an avid sports fan keeping a personal statistic book of all of her kids and grandkids and attending as many events as time allowed. She did all the chores of the farm including milking the cows herself when Darrell had knee surgery, feeding calves, and driving the tractor and trucks. She had a servant’s heart. She loved to laugh, to entertain, and to play table games.
Jeanette is survived by her husband Darrell and 5 children and spouses: Rod and wife Diana Reese, Terre and husband Mark McDonald, Max and wife Kim Reese, Jim and wife Margaret Reese, and Ken and wife Lynn Reese. She is also survived by 21 grandchildren with 16 spouses, and 32 great grandchildren.
She is preceded in death by her parents and brother Don Webster of Pryor. The family celebrated her life in a private ceremony on Sunday evening.
Proverbs 31:30 “a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.”
