Jean Lawton Obituary

Jean Lawton
Born: April 23, 1941
Died: January 6, 2024
Jean Lawton, of Santa Fe, New Mexico, passed away on January 6, 2024 after several severe bouts of pneumonia.
She was born in Princeton, Illinois to Watson and Ellen (Stevens) Lawton on April 23, 1941, the middle child with an older sister and younger brother. She attended Princeton schools and graduated from Elgin Academy in Elgin, Illinois in 1959. She enjoyed horses and riding as a young girl, and eventually owned her own horse she called Trigger. After high school, she enrolled at the University of New Mexico and after getting married and having a daughter, Cris, there, she finished her degree and spent the next 25 years teaching physical education in the Albuquerque Elementary School system. During this time she developed an interest in photography and the University of New Mexico employed her as an athletic photographer. She even had a photo published in Sports Illustrated. The last half of her life was lived in Santa Fe and she enjoyed many years of retirement, continuing as an amateur photographer, pursuing the enjoyment of reading, doing some traveling and spending time with family and friends. Jean was an exceptionally kind and loving friend to those she met along the way in life. She will be greatly missed.
She is survived by her sister, Carolyn Workman, of Princeton; and brother, Steve Lawton (Jeanie Taylor) of Santa Cruz, Calif; nieces, Gretchen Bauer, Erika Robbins and nephew, Kurt Workman, all of the Princeton area. Nine great nieces and nephews also survive as do many, many friends from Santa Fe.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Watson and Ellen Lawton, and her daughter, Cristine Brown who passed away in 2015.
She will be buried at Oakland Cemetery, and her family will host a celebration of her life in Princeton in the spring of 2024.

To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.

Published by Bureau County Republican on Jan. 20, 2024.

Memories and Condolences
for Jean Lawton

11 Entries

Barbara Bradford

July 8, 2024

I was Jean's downstairs neighbor at the Zocalo for eleven years. She will truly be missed and remembered. She loved her family and friends so very much.

Jan Melendez

April 18, 2024

It was always a pleasure to spend time with Jean. I knew her first through a book club a number of years ago and then through our walking group. I took her to lunch after her daughter died - sadly we shared that reality. It was fun to visit with her about the fact that we shared the same birth years and dates of high school graduations. I will miss her.

Esther Jantzen

March 24, 2024

Hello, I am a friend of Jean's from Santa Fe who has been living in Mexico for several months. I did not know of her death. If you could please let me know when her Memorial service will be, I would appreciate it. I treasured my friendship with Jean; we had wonderful excursions and conversations together; and she taught me about iPhone photography. and I'm very sorry she is no longer with us. My sincere condolences to her family.

Nancy Meister

February 17, 2024

Dear Carolyn and Steve, I somehow had a sense that your dear sister, Jean had died recently. I hope it was peaceful in the end. She fought hard since her diagnosis and was a model of cancer survivorship. I saw her on my last trip to Santa Fe which was two years ago during the heart of Covid.
We talked off and on mostly about sports and especially golf. I admired her passion for sports and she followed the University of Arizona ever since her daughter went there. She loved meeting you all every summer in San Diego and making the trips to Princeton on the train. we also shared an interest in opera and one time we tailgated with dinner and wine. I am sorry that I was not in touch with her during the last several difficult months. Life is not fair that she had to deal with such a difficult health challenge but I never hear her complain or say why me? She was a blessing to all of us over the years and may her memory remain forever a blessing. Carolyn, if you ever feel like talking, don't hesitate to call at 520 906-4203 or [email protected]

Frank Potter

February 5, 2024

I worked with Jean in the 80's at Mckinley Middle School. I have nothing but good memories of her. God Bless you Jean . Gone but not forgotten.

Elaine Pinkerton Coleman

February 4, 2024

Jean lived a beautiful life and was a gift to her friends. I remember sharing walks with her at Glow Club, being in spin classes with her, learning technology from her and welcoming her graceful, upbeat presence. It always made my day better to see Jean! May she rest in peace.

Dorothy W.

February 4, 2024

I am very sorry to hear of Jean's passing. She was an encouraging friend, always interested in what I was doing and how my life was going. I enjoyed seeing her iPhone photography and iPad creations. I will miss her company and our chats in our walking group. ~Dorothy W.

Barbara Sandoval

January 23, 2024

We knew Jean at different times in our lives. Tony met Jean when she was involved in the UNM running community. Barbara taught at McKinley when Jean taught there in the 80s. We then moved to CA. Last time we saw Jean was at Haaland's funeral.
Tony & Barbara Sandoval

Dannie Roark

January 21, 2024

Jean was an amazing woman. I met her 20 years ago in Santa Fe and she became a dear friend during that time. She was a kind, interesting, curious, funny and above all a generous friend. My partner Bob, Jean and I spent almost every weekend together... going to the movies, spending holidays together, talking about politics and the latest books we all had read. She was the most encouraging friend I will ever have.
She will be missed so much!

JoDeane Duran

January 20, 2024

I am so sad to hear about Jean's passing. I met her first at Montecito & then became her personal shopping gal. She will be surely missed Jodeane

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