My Grandparents
Meet Jean and Willis Weathers. My grandparents. Their story is a beautiful one and most have described it as the notebook. They met when they were 5 and were at the hip from then on. They got married in 1956 and spent 67 years married together. They had 3 children Mary (my Aunt), Dwanda (my mom), and Will (my uncle). They also had 9 Grandchildren: Tori, Me, Reese, Hannah, Grayson, Sanders, Carson, Quinn, Colin and 3 Great Grandchildren: Hayden, Hunter, Hawkins.
They were always big family orientated people. They lived in Hilton Head for awhile, but then moved when more grandchildren came into the picture. I remember at one point they lived in Lake Norman and we always called Lake Norman Granddaddy's big water. Anytime we saw a lake I always had to ask my mom if it was Granddaddy's big water. Eventually, they lived in Concord so they could right in the middle between my family in Harrisburg and my cousins in Huntersville. We also had a family reunion every year for my grandfather's side of the family. They attended every year until they were unable to physically. This photo was taken at the last family reunion they attended physically.
On January 11th, 2024 my grandmother Jean passed away at the age of 90 just 3 days shy of her birthday. On January 14th (my grandmother's birthday) my granddaddy Willis passed away at the age of 92 to be with her. We all knew that when one would pass the other would not be far behind. You never saw one without the other. My mom was with my grandfather the night he passed and he told him that if he wanted to see grandmother for her birthday he had about 5 minutes, he passed a couple minutes after that.
Jean Weathers
My grandmother was a sweet and beautiful soul. Her passion was music and taught piano, organ, and voice. She taught me and my siblings and cousins piano growing up. She also made sure everything was super nice and orderly. She kept everyone in check. She was always the one to make sure everything was perfect when people came over. One of my favorite stories was when I was staying with them for a weekend, I went to their church. My grandmother had to let me know to bring a dress with me because their church was very different from mine. At my church, everyone wore jeans, or casual clothing at hers everyone wore dresses and suits. So I wore a dress to the service and when it was time to go to the children's church I was the only one who was wearing a dress everyone else was in jeans or dress pants and nice shirt. She was always very proper like that and wanted to make sure everyone was as well. During her funeral the pastor described her as a steel magnolia. She had a wonderful laugh and beautiful smile. I always enjoyed talking with her, and spending time with her.
Willis Weathers
My grandfather was always a talker and always enjoyed a party. Quick chat was not in his vocabulary. I remember anytime I went with him somewhere I was introduced to his friends (even if I had met them before) and ended up in a long conversation with them. He was always protective of my grandmother even as kids. When my grandmother was in the hospital my grandfather always wanted to make sure that she was their priority and help her right away. He also had a love for chocolate. Anytime my grandmother would come over for piano lessons he would come inside and always asked if we had anything chocolate. He and my grandmother, when we would leave their house, would stand outside and wave to us until we had turned the corner. I am still convinced to this day that if we turned around they would've still been waving. He worked at the DMV as a Driver License Examiner and I remember him taking me to a parking lot and teaching me how to drive. I'm still not the best driver even 10+ years later, but he did a great job teaching me.
Weathers Family Reunion
This is a picture from 2016 to show just how many people we usually have in attendance
Spending almost 90 years with a person is something that most people can't even comprehend. Their love story is like no other. Everyone involved with the funeral arrangements said that they have never had a double funeral before, and I think it just adds to how amazing they were and the love they had for each other. Anytime I've shared with someone about their life they always say it is just like the notebook. In the handout they had at the funeral they had quotes from the notebook in it. One of my favorites is "The best love is the kind that awakens the soul and makes us reach for more, that plants a fire in our hearts and brings peace to our minds, and that's what you've given me. That's what I hope to give to you forever. I love you. I'll be seeing you."
Thank you for spending the time to learn about my amazing grandparents. In life I hope you enjoy music, eat a piece of chocolate and have a conversation with someone and spend time with them. Life is so finite and we only have a short amount of time to spend time with those we love and conversations we can have. So enjoy your life and those in it, meet someone new, and have a wonderful rest of your day.
If you want to learn more about them you can click the link for their obituary
