Janna Ruth Carter Meyers

Janna “Jan” Ruth Carter Meyers, age 82, was called home by the Lord on March 24, 2023. Jan was born in Maynardville, Tennessee, to Frank and Myrtle Carter. She was the youngest of eight children. Jan accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior at an early age. Jan graduated from Horace Maynard High School in the class of 1958, where she was a basketball star and held several school records, one of which still stands today. Jan resided in Greensboro, North Carolina, for the past 20 years, where she enjoyed spending time with friends and family.

After graduation, Jan attended the Tennessee School of Beauty in Knoxville, where she received her cosmetology license in 1960. Jan owned and operated her own beauty shop in Maynardville, where she served clients until the birth of her third daughter in 1971. She was a wife and homemaker until she and her husband, Ron, purchased Sandlick Grocery store, where they served the Claiborne County community together from 1984 to 1990.

Jan is preceded in death by her parents, Frank and Myrtle Carter; her brothers, Robert “Marshall” Carter, Otis Carter, and Roy Carter; her sisters, Betty Monroe and Wilma “Mimi” Reeves; and her grandson, Matthew Holloway. Jan was also preceded in death by her former husband, Rondell Grant Meyers.

Jan is survived by two brothers, Coy Carter (Iva) and Carlos Carter (Jean). She is also survived by three daughters, who dearly loved their mother: Ronda Lyn Meyers Holloway, her husband, Chris, and their three children, Zachary Grant Collins, Emily Elizabeth Collins, and William Garrett Holloway; Tonya Renee Meyers Lomas, and her children, Kelby Nicole Lomas and Harold Tanner Lomas; and Jacqueline Lee Meyers Graves, her husband, Chris, and their son, Christian Bryce Graves. A great-granddaughter, Kirah Zaie Holloway, also survives her.

Jan also had a host of nieces and nephews and other family and friends and loved each one of them.

Jan was a gifted hostess who loved to cook for those she loved. Her home was always open to everyone, and you could count on a good meal or dessert when you were there. Jan could cook anything, but she was famous for her coleslaw, chicken and dumplings, pinto beans, beef tips and rice, macaroni and cheese, banana pudding, and red velvet cake, just to name a few. She and Ron loved to entertain at the “house on the hill,” and a fish fry was something you did NOT want to miss.

Jan was gifted and talented and loved to knit and cross stitch. She made many different things for her family members over the years. She was a fierce rook player and could beat her basketball-playing daughters at a game of HORSE at any given time. She loved to travel and had been to every state at least once and has a prolific salt and pepper shaker collection to prove it. She loved deep-sea fishing and had many funny stories about those trips.

Jan was the best mother ever. She put her girls first. She attended ballgames and recitals, competitions, and matches, always cheering the loudest. She helped birth and raise grandchildren and could clean a house in half the time any of the rest of us could. She loved Godiva chocolates, working crossword puzzles, and watching Court TV. She loved to read the Bible and had read it several times from start to finish. She had a strong faith and made certain her children attended Sunday School and church growing up.

She loved that everyone called her MJ (Momma Jan or Mamaw Jan). She was generous and witty and always served others. Her family was her greatest treasure. She loved nothing better than an extended stay with Jackie and her family, shopping with Tonya, or sitting on the back deck on Saturday mornings watching the birds with Ronda and Chris.

She was the toughest person in our family with the biggest heart. She will be so very missed. Her legacy will live on through all of us, and we will strive to continue to make her proud.

The family will host a celebration of life on April 30 at Grace Baptist Church in the Grace Student Ministry Building located at 7171 Oak Ridge Highway, Knoxville, TN. The family will be there to receive friends starting at 2:00. The service will begin at 3:00.

Anybody who knew and loved her is welcome to attend and share your favorite memory or funny story with us.

Hanes Lineberry North Elm in Greensboro, NC, is assisting the family with arrangements.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.haneslineberryfhnorthelm.com for the Meyers family.