Jennie Blevins

Jennie Blevins was a modest woman, quiet and observant in her ways. She was trustworthy and traditional in her approach to her life and in her relationships. She was tough-minded with the kind of “stick to it” attitude that earned the respect of all who knew her. She was also a woman who was meticulous, carefully disciplined, and orderly in virtually everything she undertook. Realistic about life, she was always at the ready, prepared to take on responsibility.

       Her parents were Anna and Ben Molenaar. Jennie was raised in Magnolia and Jasper, Minnesota. She was brought up to be self-confident and dependable. These were traits that would serve her well throughout her life.

      Growing up in the Blevins household was a bit different than most homes. There were good times to be had, but just as often there was a fair share of challenges as well. However, Jennie was able to work through the usual family problems when they appeared, and she was the one person in the family who seemed able to keep the stress at bay. Jennie was raised with four sisters and 1 brother. She had two older sisters, Johanna, two younger sisters, Mary and Susie and one brother. Jennie was constantly involved in activities with her brothers and sisters. Jennie and her siblings may have had the typical rivalries while growing up but Jennie was always consistently loyal to her family.

      As a young child, Jennie was never someone who needed to be the center of attention. She wasn’t pushy and never forced her way into games or other activities. Jennie developed a variety of interests, though, and the things she enjoyed doing she did well. She was always curious about the world around her and was often eager to explore it. In her spare time she liked Dolls. However, what Jennie enjoyed most was simply playing and spending time with her many friends.

      Always considered to be a solid friend, Jennie was fortunate to have numerous acquaintances and several very close friends during her life. Since she disliked making generalizations about people and preferred to draw her own conclusions based on direct observation, Jennie was able to see beneath the surface of relationships and became a true friend to those who knew her. She was committed to her friends and valued the trust she placed in them. It was not uncommon for Jennie to go beyond the call of duty for others, and friends frequently sought her out for advice because she had a knack for coming up with practical solutions to any type of dilemma. While growing up, some of her best friends were Cousin Jane Wagner.

       She took the responsibility of marriage to heart, giving it her total commitment.

      Jennie brought the same traditional values in her marriage to bear on how she raised her children. She was a good parent to them, always firm yet fair in her dealings. She would always listen carefully and think things through before she acted, even when it was an adverse situation. Jennie was also a walking schedule, always seeming to know what everyone in the family needed to do, where they needed to be and when they needed to be there. Jennie was blessed with three, two daughters, Susan and Linda , one son Jim. They were also blessed with five grandchildren, James, Cheryl, Paul, Gary, Suzanne and eight great grandchildren.

      Jennie greatly enjoyed what she did for a living. She was a hard worker who expected the same in return from her co-workers. She was skilled at working effectively in small groups and in one-on-one situations as well as handling solo assignments efficiently. Jennie enjoyed dealing with concrete ideas and could penetrate any amount of fuzzy information to reach the essential facts. Always able to attend to the task at hand, Jennie was excellent at meeting deadlines. She was an efficient worker, one who paid careful attention to detail, allowing sufficient time to complete one task before moving on to the next. Her primary occupation was she waitressed, when she was younger, and did childcare later in life. She was employed for twenty years for the Nursery of the Nazarene Church. Jennie worked hard to be a team player, doing what was necessary in order to get the job done.

      Jennie liked to experience things first-hand as well as learn about them. This trait carried over into her hobbies, where she was very methodical in how she organized her activities and categorized things. Since she enjoyed her private time, Jennie always tried to allocate a specific time for working on her hobbies. Her favorite pursuits were gardening, sewing, crocheting and knitting, crafts of all kinds. Jennie was content to enjoy her hobbies alone but was also willing to share her interests with others.

      As a woman who always showed great commitment to the things she believed in, it’s little wonder that Jennie was so active in her community. Being practical and mentally disciplined, Jennie preferred to base her decisions on first-hand experiences. Jennie was never afraid to roll up her sleeves and dig right in. Jennie was a member of several community groups, including serving on committees worked for the church nursery for many years.

      Jennie enjoyed traveling and taking vacations. Since she was an early starter and had a knack for planning everything, traveling with Jennie appeared effortless. She enjoyed researching all of her examined options and applying cost-effective planning techniques. Plus, no matter where she traveled, Jennie always had a back up plan at the ready, just in case. Favorite vacations included traveling to Brice and Zion with her daughter Linda and grand daughter Suzanne.

      Commitment is a key word that can be used to describe the life of Jennie Blevins. She was committed to living the life of a good woman who was both practical and trustworthy. She was committed to the traditional values that she upheld her entire life. She committed herself to being a hard worker who expected the same effort in return from those around her. Most of all, she was committed to those she knew and loved.