Jennette Armstead
On Saturday, September 11, 1954, Nealy Simmons Jr. and Janie Lee Jackson welcomed a beautiful baby girl, Jennette Marie Simmons, to their union. Jennette was a timid, loving, kind, and helpful girl from a young age. She attended Bethune Elementary School in Hollywood, Florida, and was often called the teacher’s pet. She was crowned the “Queen of the School” at Attucks Middle School in 9th grade. She finished her education at Hollywood Hills High School and shortly after lost her beloved mother. Despite the difficulty of losing her mother at a very young age, Jennette continued her education at Miami Dade Community College and then Florida State University, where she met the absolute love of her life, Waymon Armstead Jr (Joe).
Joe and Jennette married on September 16, 1977. Almost three years later, as college students, they welcomed Waymon Joseph Armstead III (Jojo) on July 6, 1980. Jennette would tell many stories about how good of a baby Jojo was and having to take him to class with her as she tried to complete her degree. Jennette leaned on advice from the beloved Aunt Mary Carol (Joe’s aunt) to receive guidance about being a wife and mother. Jennette always remembered the life lessons taught to her by Aunt Mary Carol as they helped guide her life’s journey. Jennette’s college experience was an extraordinary time in her life. She “had a ball” and met many lifelong friends. After changing her major multiple times she graduated with a B.A. and B.SW. in Social Work and English Literature. Jennette went on to have a successful career in Social Work. Shortly after graduating and moving to Orlando, Florida, Joe and Jennette welcomed a baby girl, Erika Jennette Armstead, to their union on July 14, 1982.
In 1989, due to an employment change, the Armstead family moved to the DFW area and eventually settled in Hurst, Texas. Jennette continued her career as a social worker. On April 8, 1991, she began her 20-plus years fulfilling this role with Tarrant County. Jennette always enjoyed social work because of her helpful and giving nature.
Jennette joined Westside Baptist church in 1992. She loved her church and her church family. She worked faithfully and diligently as an Usher and Sunday School teacher. Jennette had a special calling on her life, and these words were written in her recently found journal: “Truly God indeed has placed a special calling on my life. Sometimes, when I think about how far He has brought me, I shudder with tears. I feel a personal connection with God and often hear Him when I pray or meditate. There have been so many miracles in my life that it can only be God’s calling. It seems that through the God in me, people are blessed. The gift of compassion is only because of God.” Jennette has touched countless lives through her career as a social worker and serving in the church. Her beautiful smile was infectious, and she always said, “Smile because if you smile, someone will smile back.”
September 16, 2004, Jennette’s world was shaken, when she lost her beloved husband of 27 years. She mustered up the courage to go on anyhow despite the pain she felt. She shared the memory of Waymon Armstead with everyone she could and had no desire to remarry.
On August 1, 2012, Jennette retired from Tarrant County after a long career in social work. She was excited to live the “retired life” where she could sleep, travel, and hang out with her grandkids at her leisure. Jennette devoted four years of her life to caring for her two grandsons Andon and Jaxon, keeping them daily and ensuring they were well cared for while their parents worked. If you knew Jennette you know she had a full calendar. She always had to “check her calendar” for her availability. Jennette enjoyed traveling, shopping, dining with friends, talking on the phone, and any celebration you can imagine.
As Jennette slipped away into eternal glory, she was a proud member of Redeeming the Time Baptist Church in Lewisville, Texas, under the leadership of Pastor Kenneth W. Blake, where she taught Sunday School. A beloved mother, sister, aunt, and friend, Jennette will be greatly missed.
She transitioned from Earth to Glory on Wednesday, February 14, 2024. Those who remain to cherish her memory are her loving children Waymon (Stephanie) Armstead and Erika (Matthus) Howard, her beautiful sisters Nadine Hunter, Bernette (Wallace) Brown, Paulette Armstead, and Dorthenia (Rudy-deceased), and Betsey, her brothers, Stephen Stone and Ronald (Elnora) Armstead; her grandchildren, Ellison, Andon, Jaxon, Jaiden, and Sophie, and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, family, and friends. Those who preceded her in death are her parents, Nealy Simmons and Janie Stone, husband Waymon Armstead Jr, and her siblings, Willie Lee (Deloris) Simmons, Donald Simmons, and Stephanie Armstead.