Ms. Jewel Ethel Martin (née Whittaker) passed away peacefully in her home surrounded by family on July 10, 2018 in Kansas City, Missouri at the age of 75. Jewel was born on January 15, 1943 in Okmulgee, Oklahoma, the youngest of ten children. She was preceded in death by her parents, Lloyd Whittaker and Ernestine Whittaker (née Simmons), her sisters, Dorothy M. Pate and Bobbie J. Whittaker, and her brothers, Virgil Simmons, Leonard Whittaker, Lloyd Whittaker, Jr., Wilbert Whittaker, Johnnie Whittaker, and Herman Whittaker.
A country girl at heart, she loved growing up in Oklahoma, but after graduating from Wheatley High School in Beggs, Oklahoma, Jewel decided to follow her big sister, Dorothy Pate to Kansas City, Missouri. It wasn’t long after moving to Kansas City that Jewel started working at Western Electric in the Processing Department where she met one of her life-long best friends, Doris Gant. Jewel also got married to Larry Martin and from that long union that later dissolved she had three daughters: Donna, Julie, and Bobbie.
Jewel was focused on being a homemaker raising three kids, but eventually started working at Marion Laboratories in the production plant area until her retirement. Jewel spent her life being a wife, sister, mother, grandmother, and faithful servant to God. She made it a point to ensure that her children were raised knowing and believing in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Jewel led a Christian life by example and was a dedicated member of Palestine Missionary Baptist Church since 1962. She sang in the Mass Choir and before getting ill, regularly attended the Mixed Adult #3 Sunday School class. On any given Friday, you could catch Jewel in the church sanctuary cleaning the piano and pews, and over the years, she served God by volunteering at a variety of church-related events.
Over the years Jewel stayed faithful to God and strived to live an independent life. She studied to obtain her Nurse Assistant Certification for long term care facilities. She also worked with the Senior Corps Foster Grandparents program to help young children learn to read and write in a classroom environment.
Jewel loved her independence, so much so that during these last six years, she lived at Palestine Commons Senior Apartments and she had a blast with her friends at the apartment complex and the senior center across the street. Sewing quilts, playing bingo, watching the KC Royals and Chiefs games in the common area, and eating home-style cooking was Jewel’s new way of life. And we were blessed to have had such an obedient child of God in our lives for seventy-five years.
Jewel Ethel Martin is survived by her three daughters: Donna F. Clark (Anthony) of Fort Worth, Texas, Julie A. Martin of Kansas City, Missouri, and Bobbie J. Martin of Jacksonville, Florida; her sibling, Enoch Whittaker (Beatrice) of Okmulgee, Oklahoma; her only grandson, Ronandus M. Johnson Jr. of Kansas City, Missouri; and a host of nieces and nephews, all of whom she loved. Funeral Service for Jewel Ethel Martin will be held Saturday, July 21, 10:00 a.m. at Palestine Missionary Baptist Church of Jesus Christ, 3619 E. 35th Street. Visitation will be from 9:00 a.m. until 10:00 a.m. at the Church.
Interment, Forest Hill Cemetery.
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