Vesta Jean Howard

Vesta Jean Titus Wilkie Ekstrom Howard, born December 2, 1933, died

October 22, 2017 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Jean was born to Guy and Isa Titus in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She was one of seven siblings, one of which was her twin brother. She was active in school programs, such as the flag corps, and graduated from Palmer High School. Her family moved to Grand Junction in 1952 after buying a peach orchard on Orchard Mesa.  Jean, as all her friends called her, made friends easily and formed lifelong friendships with many.  She worked as a maid at the motel on First Street and North Avenue, then as a dishwasher for many years at several restaurants around the Grand Valley.  She also did house cleaning for elderly people as well as in the housekeeping department at the Palisade Nursing Home.   Jean tried her hand at other endeavors such as Avon, Tupperware, Food truck service, and finally delivered newspapers for several years for The Daily Sentinel before becoming disabled and retiring.

Jean was the mother of four children from her first marriage all who outgrew her 4'9" stature. She loved to travel and was inquisitive, fun loving and usually ready to try just about anything as long as it didn't involve water.  She never learned to swim and was deathly afraid of drowning. She loved dogs and cats, with sometimes more than one in her care until she developed allergies to their dander.  She was always looking for a bargain, and her extra room proved she found many. In the past decade, she became an avid and proficient Bingo player and even helped others while winning with her own cards, which she knew how to pick.

She is survived by her children Diana Wilkie, Laura Werling, Orla (Charles) Loper, and Harold Wilkie; six grandchildren Richard Werling, Jr., Tanya (Alan) Capriotti, and Matthew (Amy) Werling, Rachael (Steve) Caballero, and Shawn (Amen) Loper; twelve great grandchildren Brandon, Nathan, Devin and Steven Capriotti, Ashley, Jacob, Benjamin, Angela, and (soon to arrive Tanner) Werling, Caleb and Clover Caballero, and Jael Loper; and her sister Evelyn (Allen) VanDyke from Spokane, WA.  

A graveside service will be held on Wednesday, October 25, 2017 at 1:00 PM at Orchard Mesa Cemetery, 2620 Legacy Way, Grand Junction, Colorado.