I'm really thankful to have such great friends in my life. Tonight, Ashley and I stopped by the Sower's house and got into a discussion on Truth with Grace. It is so great to have friends that we can pop in on at pretty much any time and be able to have a deep, meaningful conversation with them. I thank the Sowers for their wisdom and for speaking truth into our lives...with grace.
We played in Kilgore, TX yesterday with Jon Randles. It is always awesome to be with him. There were a number of folks that made decisions, which was really cool.
I started teaching a new student today. I can already tell that she has a great aptitude for learning music. I thank God for the provision that he provides for Ash and me.
I also had my second group lesson with 3 guitarists at the Otas house. We stayed for pizza, heard Kayla rock some Greensleeves on the French Horn, and I got to put the Ota's son Carter to sleep with 'Green Eggs and Ham' and 'Where the Wild Things Are,' two of my personal favorites. It was a great day.
Now off to bed...going to feed the homeless downtown with Justin tomorrow. Aaron out.
Nee-Nee Article
So, pretty much my Great-Grandmother's life was so awesome that they decided to do a special article on her in the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram. They interviewed my mom and Great-Aunt Janelle for it. I thought this was pretty cool.
FORT WORTH MOTHER WORKED HARD ALL HER LIFE FOR HER FAMILY
BY CHRIS VAUGHN
cvaughn@star-telegram.com
FORT WORTH -- Juanita McNatt was 14 when her mother died, and she had to go to work.
Mrs. McNatt was 29 when her husband died, and she had to keep working.
Straight on through the years -- through children, grandchildren and two generations more, a bomber plant, professional wrestling promotions and a dry cleaning business -- Mrs. McNatt worked, until she finally decided to retire at the age of almost 90.
"She instilled a strong work ethic in all of us," said her granddaughter, Denise Cauble of Arlington. "All the women in our family work, and we're all independent."
The family matriarch, known as "Nee Nee," quietly died on Monday in bed at her daughter's house in the Riverside neighborhood of Fort Worth. She had made it to 98.
Born Dec. 21, 1910, in Graham, Mrs. McNatt was the oldest of six children. When she was 14 and her youngest sibling was 2, her mother died of tuberculosis. "I think because of that, she was a lifelong caregiver," said her daughter, Janelle Kavanaugh, 71.
Her first job, as a teenager, was at the Montgomery Ward department store in Fort Worth, where she met her first husband, John Crow. He died in December 1939 after they had been married less than 10 years, leaving her with two young daughters to raise.
But because Social Security did not start helping widows with children until 1940, "she was never able to get any government help for us," Kavanaugh said.
"She was my hero because she kept us together," she said.
Within a few years, she married her second husband, Ellis McNatt, who died in 1991.
She worked at the Consolidated Vultee bomber plant during World War II, then at her aunt's window-shade shop. From the mid-1950s through the mid-1970s, she worked for an uncle who owned a promotions firm that booked professional wrestling shows at the Northside Coliseum in the Stockyards.
"I spent a lot of Saturdays going to work with her at the Northside Coliseum," Cauble said. "She would set us up in an office, and we got to act like we were working. We got to play in the Coliseum and help make corndogs."
Mrs. McNatt's grandchildren met some of the great professional wrestlers of the day -- George Scott, Fritz Von Erich and Johnny Valentine -- and received a newsletter on the matches when they were at summer camps.
Her children and grandchildren eagerly anticipated the matches, even if no one was sure that Mrs. McNatt loved it as much. "She didn't really dislike anything," her daughter said. "But she went because we wanted to go."
After she left the world of professional wrestling promotions, she went to work for her daughter at Riverside Cleaners, where she was a fixture into her late 80s.
She worked not just because she had to; she also liked it for the social interaction, her family said. "She loved people," her daughter said.
Other survivors include daughter Jonette White; stepdaughter Wanda Hensley; nine grandchildren; 19 great-grandchildren; and 1 great-great-grandchild.
Service: 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Mount Olivet Funeral Home, 2301 N. Sylvania Ave. Burial: Mount Olivet Cemetery.
FORT WORTH MOTHER WORKED HARD ALL HER LIFE FOR HER FAMILY
BY CHRIS VAUGHN
cvaughn@star-telegram.com
FORT WORTH -- Juanita McNatt was 14 when her mother died, and she had to go to work.
Mrs. McNatt was 29 when her husband died, and she had to keep working.
Straight on through the years -- through children, grandchildren and two generations more, a bomber plant, professional wrestling promotions and a dry cleaning business -- Mrs. McNatt worked, until she finally decided to retire at the age of almost 90.
"She instilled a strong work ethic in all of us," said her granddaughter, Denise Cauble of Arlington. "All the women in our family work, and we're all independent."
The family matriarch, known as "Nee Nee," quietly died on Monday in bed at her daughter's house in the Riverside neighborhood of Fort Worth. She had made it to 98.
Born Dec. 21, 1910, in Graham, Mrs. McNatt was the oldest of six children. When she was 14 and her youngest sibling was 2, her mother died of tuberculosis. "I think because of that, she was a lifelong caregiver," said her daughter, Janelle Kavanaugh, 71.
Her first job, as a teenager, was at the Montgomery Ward department store in Fort Worth, where she met her first husband, John Crow. He died in December 1939 after they had been married less than 10 years, leaving her with two young daughters to raise.
But because Social Security did not start helping widows with children until 1940, "she was never able to get any government help for us," Kavanaugh said.
"She was my hero because she kept us together," she said.
Within a few years, she married her second husband, Ellis McNatt, who died in 1991.
She worked at the Consolidated Vultee bomber plant during World War II, then at her aunt's window-shade shop. From the mid-1950s through the mid-1970s, she worked for an uncle who owned a promotions firm that booked professional wrestling shows at the Northside Coliseum in the Stockyards.
"I spent a lot of Saturdays going to work with her at the Northside Coliseum," Cauble said. "She would set us up in an office, and we got to act like we were working. We got to play in the Coliseum and help make corndogs."
Mrs. McNatt's grandchildren met some of the great professional wrestlers of the day -- George Scott, Fritz Von Erich and Johnny Valentine -- and received a newsletter on the matches when they were at summer camps.
Her children and grandchildren eagerly anticipated the matches, even if no one was sure that Mrs. McNatt loved it as much. "She didn't really dislike anything," her daughter said. "But she went because we wanted to go."
After she left the world of professional wrestling promotions, she went to work for her daughter at Riverside Cleaners, where she was a fixture into her late 80s.
She worked not just because she had to; she also liked it for the social interaction, her family said. "She loved people," her daughter said.
Other survivors include daughter Jonette White; stepdaughter Wanda Hensley; nine grandchildren; 19 great-grandchildren; and 1 great-great-grandchild.
Service: 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Mount Olivet Funeral Home, 2301 N. Sylvania Ave. Burial: Mount Olivet Cemetery.
The Nee-Nee Wink
My great-grandmother, Juanita McNatt, passed away on the 26th of last month. She was an amazing woman. She will be greatly missed. I have a lot of memories of her of when the Cauble kids would go and visit the cleaners in Ft. Worth. We would always run around and play hide-and-seek in the hanging clothes, and I remember that she would always give us a quarter for some gum. She would always say "Chew, chew, chew" and would laugh. She had that most distinct laugh! As mentioned below, she had an incredible work ethic, and she was so full of life. She worked hard her whole life, and she took care of her family, finally retiring at the age of 89. She always had a twinkle in her eye that made you feel like a million dollars, and it was impossible not to smile when she gave you that awesome "Nee-Nee wink." Even in her last few years while her health was degenerating and she wasn't recognizing most people anymore, she would still give me the same wink and smile. This always gave me peace and made me know that everything was going to be OK. It was a blessing to know her and be loved by her, and I will miss her. I was not able to make it to the funeral, which has been a tough thing for me to accept. Tommy Hart did the funeral, and I heard it was a very celebratory time. It has been hard to have closure on her passing, but God has given me a peace about it.
I want to be like Nee-Nee. I want to love people and be a model of sacrifice for others. It is so comforting to think that she is with the Lord now. I can't wait to see her again one day in heaven! Thanks for being a blessing on this earth, Nee-nee!
Here is the Obituary from the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram:
Juanita E. McNatt
1910 - 2009
Juanita E. McNatt, 98, a loving mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, went home to be with her Lord and Savior on Monday, Jan. 26, 2009.
Funeral: 3:30 p.m. Saturday in Mount Olivet Chapel. Interment: Mount Olivet Cemetery. Visitation: 6 to 8 p.m. Friday at Mount Olivet Funeral Home.
Memorials: Alzheimer's Association, 101 Summit Ave., Suite 300, Fort Worth, Texas 76102; American Heart Association, Box 841125, Dallas, Texas 76284; or a charity of choice.
Juanita was born Dec. 21, 1910, in Graham, and was a longtime resident of Fort Worth. She will be remembered by many through her work as administrative assistant at Northside Coliseum wrestling matches. She worked several years at Riverside Cleaners. Juanita was a member of Haltom Road Baptist Church. Her love and devotion to her family and friends were unwavering. She will be remembered for her generous and caring spirit and will be sorely missed.
She was preceded in death by her husbands, John Crow and Ellis McNatt; son, Bobby McNatt; and grandsons, Charles Seaman, Michael Lynn Kavanaugh and Stuart Adams.
Survivors: Daughters, Jonette White, Janelle Kavanaugh and husband, Donald, and Wanda Hensley; daughter-in-law, Mary McNatt; grandchildren, Denise Cauble and Tommy, Mark and Kathy White, Rosemary Behan and Michael, Joseph Kavanaugh and Patti, Sharon Adams, Judy Jones and Larry, Amy Moody and Mike, John Seaman and Joyce Seaman; great-grandchildren, Tamara Cauble, Aaron Cauble and Ashley, Alex Cauble and Brooke, Nicole and Alana White, Chris, Claire, John and Rose Behan, Brandy Williams and Roderick, Sydney and Juli Kavanaugh, Nick and Paige Adams, Jeremiah and Jonathan Jones, Hunter, Scott and Tyler Moody; great-great-grandson, R.J. Williams; several nieces and nephews; and a host of friends.