JAN JAMES GRANBERRY

1937-2017

Jan James Granberry died on Sunday, January 15, 2017, in Houston, three days after her 80th birthday. She was born on January 12, 1937, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, to Mary Jane and Leonard E. James.

After attending Ray High School in Corpus Christi, Texas, and Hillcrest High School in Dallas, Texas, Jan attended the University of Texas at Austin where she was a proud member of Delta Delta Delta. At UT, Jan earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. During the summer following her sophomore year at UT, Jan married Curtis E. Granberry.

Jan and Curt moved their family seven times in the next twenty years, and one of Jan’s greatest talents was making every house they lived in a true home. Few things brought Jan greater joy than providing for the needs of her family. She particularly enjoyed hosting holiday dinners at which her loved ones gathered around a beautifully decorated table for a delicious meal. Jan was incredibly proud of her four children and, perhaps even more so, of her seven grandchildren; she never missed an opportunity to talk about their talents and about their accomplishments.

Over the years, Jan had many passions. She was artistically creative and loved to make beautiful things; she sang and played the piano; she helped design menus and test recipes for a gourmet dining club; she played league tennis with an enthusiasm that harkened back to her days on the high school tennis team. Jan was a voracious reader, a lover of music, and a loyal fan of any television programming having to do with history or dogs. Jan’s real soft spot was for animals; she never met an animal she would not rescue. Later in life, Jan became a certified paralegal; she thereafter clerked in a Harris County District Court and enjoyed working at two different Houston law firms. After retiring from the work force, Jan loved providing after-school care for two of her grandchildren.

Jan was preceded in death by her parents. She is survived by her children, Jenny Granberry Koehler-Prasifka, Judy Granberry, James Curtis Granberry, and Robert Jeffrey Granberry; by her grandchildren, Jonathan Koehler, SaraJane Koehler, Erin Granberry, Robin Granberry, Meredith Granberry, Devon Granberry, and William Granberry; and by her beloved pugs, Nigel and Stuart (“the boys”). Jan is also survived by her exhusband, Curtis E. Granberry, and by her sister, Anne Bradley.

In lieu of flowers, Jan’s family kindly requests that any memorial donations be made to PugHearts of Houston or to Houston SPCA.