Obituary of Jennie E. Bean

Jennie E. Bean, 100, died Monday, September 25, 2023, in the Lutheran Home and Rehabilitation Center. She was born December 29, 1923, in Hancock County IL, a daughter of Karl and Irma Kiser Ernst. A graduate of Western Illinois University in 1944, she earned a bachelor's degree in Home Economics and Teaching. That same spring, she married C. Thomas Bean and the two went to Oak Ridge TN where they worked for the Manhattan Project. Following the war, they lived in Lawrence Kansas where Jennie worked at the university library while Tom completed his studies in chemistry. Jennie and Tom raised their two children, David and Nancy, in Niagara Falls NY, living there almost thirty years. Following a career shift for Tom, they lived another thirty years in Ashland KY. Wherever they lived they enjoyed travel to national parks in the US and Canada and community and church service. Jennie volunteered with Meals on Wheels in New York and in Kentucky for over twenty-five years. She also enjoyed sewing and quilting and being a member of various women's service organizations. Jennie was preceded in death by her husband Tom in 2007; her son David Thomas Bean in 2021; two brothers, Claude and James Ernst; and a sister, Thelma Gleason. After Tom's death Jennie moved back to New York to be near her daughter and family. She enjoyed many years living in the Lutheran campus community independently at Carlson Tower and then in assisted living at Hultquist Place. Surviving is daughter Nancy (Daniel) Callahan of Randolph. She was grandmother to Nancy's sons Liam (Meghann) Callahan and Kevin Callahan, and great grandmother to their children Crew and Riley. She was also grandmother to David's children Cheri (Tim) Finnegan of Florida, Christopher (Dana) Carpenter of Pennsylvania, Fernando (Chelsea) Escaffi of North Carolina and Jazmin Escaffi of Virginia. Jennie also leaves a nephew and several nieces whom she cherished. Services will be private. Jennie's ashes will be buried with her husband and son in Winchester IL in the spring. Online condolences may be left at www.lindfuneralhome.com.