Amy Esther Lewis at age 105 was welcomed into her heavenly home on April 29, 2026. Esther (aka Janie {compliments of Uncle Fred} or Grandma J {affectionally called by her Great-Grand children} was the oldest of seven children of Oren Preller Wren and Clarice Glascock Wren.

Living in the Missouri bottoms and experiencing floods annually, Janie’s family lived on 12 different farms during her first 14 years. As a young girl, her playground was the Missouri river bottom and surrounding hills. She had many stories of summer days spent running through the woods, swinging on willow branches and dropping in the creek and catching crawdads in the creeks. She and her brothers were always climbing trees, hills or walking railroad tracks, usually while mom was busy with wash, etc. and didn’t observe their quiet departure.

Few of us can realize the simple joys that filled their days, today we might think are trivial. They took nothing for granted. With no indoor plumbing, water or electricity, most of their play had purpose; either gathering wood for the cook stove or getting water from the creek for household use. She lived through the lows of a great depression and world war; the highs; of the growth of our country, industry boom of cars, airplanes, skyscrapers, and flights to the moon. She went from a barefoot little girl walking everywhere they went to the modern-day space age. One of her fondest memories of the times was watching the first moon walk.

She lived her life as a testament to her faith and her God and projected that love to all she encountered. She was a 90-year member of Goshen Primitive Baptist Church. She was a Worthy Matron of Eastern Star and served as president of American Legion Auxiliary

At a very young age Janie told her preacher that she wanted to be a teacher when she grew up. After her high school graduation in 1940 her teaching career was put on hold while she moved to Kansas City with a friend for an 8-week course in Secretarial/Accounting. She worked in Kansas City for Sears and Montgomery Ward for a while until her roommate got married. Then Janie and brother Lahmon went to St Louis to work for a small arms Plant. When Lahmon answered the call for Army duty, Janie transferred to Oklahoma City to an airplane factory. There she met and married Will H. Lewis who soon after left for Navy duty.

She returned home to wait out the war and begin her teaching career. After taking correspondence courses, she took the teachers exams and started teaching grades 1 through 8 at William Wren School (1943). She had to continue taking required college courses through the years while teaching at William Wren, Wilton, and Joe Wren; all one room schools. Southern Boone school district consolidated in 1949, and she continued teaching in Ashland for 23 years as Special Ed teacher, 5th grade teacher and Elementary Principal. In 1969 she moved to Vandalia, Mo and taught 3rd grade for 13 years before retiring in 1982 and once again moved back home to Ashland.

She loved her time teaching and all the children that passed through her classes. Through all these years she kept her records and pictures of her students. They were all special to her. She spent many hours the past few years looking through her notes and remembering some small story or incident with each child.

After her “retirement” she continued to substitute teach at Southern Boone until 1991. It pleased her to be teaching the children of her former students.

Although vowing never to start quilting, once she moved home and transported her mother to several quilting Bee’s she mastered the art herself. She made over 125 large quilts and 38 baby quilts plus 70 or more lap blankets which were shared with all her family and friends.

Her favorite pass time was watching all the grands playing together and watching them grow up before her.

She is now by the loving side of her heavenly father and those of her family that has gone before her. Including her parents Oren and Clarice Wren, husband Will Lewis, brothers Virgil, Lahmon and Thurman Wren, sister Fern McDonald and son Troy Lewis and great great-granddaughter Sicily Paige Parks.

Grama J will always be remembered at family gatherings and especially missed by her son Dale Lewis (Dolly), grandchildren Amy Amudson, Shelly Long (Scott), Beth Hale (Steve), Bill Lewis (Tami) and Adam Lewis (Dawn). 15 great grandchildren and 14 great great-grandchildren, plus numerous nieces and nephews.

We are all blessed to have been a part of her family and will always strive to honor her in our life decisions.

A visitation will be held on Saturday, May 2, 2026 from 2-4pm at Robinson-Yager Funeral Home. Funeral services honoring Amy will be Sunday, May 3, 2026 at 3pm at Goshen Primitive Baptist Church with burial following at Goshen Cemetery.

Memorial Contributions may be made to Goshen Cemetery.

Robinson-Yager Funeral Home is honored to serve the Lewis Family.