Jean Margret Wait

Jean "Jeanne" Margret Arnett Wait passed away on Tuesday, October 21, 2025 in Tyler, Texas.

Jeanne was born May 27, 1949 in La Crosse, Wisconsin, to Lila Almira Ray Arnett and Wayne Edwin Arnett.

Jeanne married Jan Lee Wait on December 27, 1970. The next year, they began their married life together by moving across the country, to Tyler, Texas. They started a new business, Brite-Way Window Service, for which she was the business operations manager until the time of her death. While the business put bread on the table, her most treasured roles were homemaker and mom to her sons, Jeremy and Jared.

Jeanne loved others well by gathering people in her home and around the table. Friends and family all had favorite meals and treats, but for many children (and adults), her homemade sugar cookies took the top spot. More important than the food, was that she ensured her guests felt welcome. For Jeanne, hospitality meant that everyone left with full bellies and full hearts.

Jeanne knew how to create holiday magic for her family. Her favorite season was fall and her favorite holiday was Thanksgiving. As summer began to lose its grip, pumpkins filled her home and yard. For years, she would make herself wait until September 1 to cozy her home for fall, but recent years saw pumpkins arrive with the school buses. Christmas decorations also required self-restraint, which began to fail in her later years. For the longest time, Christmas trees were a backdrop to Thanksgiving dinner with timers set to light the trees at the conclusion of the meal. Once she'd had grandchildren, Christmas began creeping out more and more fully before Thanksgiving. Her justification was that Christ is our greatest gift-the one for whom we are most thankful. It also meant that she spent a day during Thanksgiving break with her two adored grandchildren, Ethan and Ivy, decorating the living room Christmas tree. Singing loudly to Feliz Navidad and other favorite Christmas songs, they learned from an early age how to tuck and space ornaments-with endless breaks for favorite treats and memories shared about her collection of ornaments.

Her grandparenting style was to always say yes. Can we take a trip to the craft store? Yes! Can we make cookies? Yes! Should we have a room fully dedicated for the messiest art projects? Yes! Can we have a third ice cream while we're at the pool? Yes! While it's the exact grandmother she promised to be, she also cared deeply about their hearts. She made sure they knew they were loved by Jesus.

Jeanne was preceded in death by her grandson, Marcos Ian, her parents and siblings, including Janet Armoto, Hope Smith, and Patty Leonard.

Jeanne is survived by her husband of 54 years, Jan Wait; son, Jeremy Wait, wife, Kristina and granddaughter, Ivy Bea; son, Jared Wait, wife, Amalia and grandson, Ethan; sister, Carol Golding; niece, Paula Loden (Scott); niece, Lisa McCrary (Rick); nephew, Dave Leonard; and numerous great nieces and nephews who she loved dearly.

A memorial service for Jeanne will be held at Good Shepherd Reformed Episcopal Church in Tyler, Texas, on Tuesday, October 28 at 1:30pm.