Juana Ferdin Salazar

Juana (Janie) Ferdin Salazar passed away peacefully on January 19, 2025. Born on March 19, 1944, in Rockdale, TX, she was the cherished daughter to Juan and Maria Ferdin and the eldest of two siblings.

From a young age, Janie was exceptionally studious and loved hitting the books, her whole school life she earned excellent grades of A’s and B’s. At the age of 14 she got her first job at Leonard’s Department Store and with a few saved paychecks Janie bought her mother “Maria” her first China dishes and she willingly began helping her parents. Janie graduated from Charles H. Milby High School in 1962 and as a senior in high school she began working for Southwestern Bell/AT&T as a long-distance and local bilingual telephone operator and moved on to a switch operator, running and connecting the phone lines. This early sense of responsibility and determination shaped her life, fostering a strong work ethic and a deep love for helping others.

Janie is preceded in death by her granddaughter Andrea 1991, son - John Marcelo Salazar - 2007, daughter – Rita Ramirez Balderaz -2020, son - Pete Ramirez – 2020 and Sister – Elena Cortez -2024.

Janie was the beloved wife, mother, grandmother and great grandmother, and is survived by her husband of 54 years Marcelino Salazar, sister – Alicia Garcia and brother in law Jose Cruz Garcia, daughter - Mary Frances Garcia (Frankie), son - Mario Salazar and daughter in law - MariaElena and daughter in law Phyllis Ramirez. She had 20 grandchildren – John, Diane, Joseph, Rosalie, Monique, Julio, Pete Joe, Johnathan, Mario Rene, Marcela, Christina Marie, Christina, Catherine, Christopher, Stevie Ray, Javier, Mario, Aneyla, Mia and Sadie and 22 great-grandchildren, 1 great-great-grandchild and many cousins, nieces and nephews. Her memory will be forever cherished by all.

Janie and Marcelino settled in the Heights neighborhood of Houston, TX and lived there for 55 years. She loved her community.

Janie’s favorite things to do was to wake up in the morning read the bible, do crossword puzzles and Sudoku. She was a strong believer in Jesus Christ and was raised in a Catholic Christian home and at the age of 40 years of age she gave her life to the Lord to become a born-again Christian. She attended church at the original Lakewood Church and she loved the Osteens and enjoyed watching Joel Osteen on TV. She read everything Christian she got her hands on, and she was a huge giver. She sewed into many ministries 700 Club CBN, the Internation Fellowship of Christians and Jews and to the Foundation of Praise.

Janie will be remembered for her unshakable faith, her generous spirit, and the immense generosity she poured into her family and community. Her life was a testament to resilience, kindness, and devotion, and her legacy will live on in all who knew her.