Jeanne Lambert Walker Obituary - Visitation & Funeral Information

Jeanne Marie Lambert Walker, 90, passed away on August 13, 2016 in her West Hartford home after a long illness. The beloved wife of the late Gilbert Walker, Jr., she was born in Hartford on February 27, 1926, and raised in Toledo, Ohio, and New Britain, Connecticut. Jeanne is survived by her six children, Gilbert Walker III of West Hartford; Margaret Lambert Walker and her husband Erick Avari of Los Angeles; Jonathan Walker and his wife Cherie of Monroe; David Walker and his wife Patricia of Glenside, PA; Quentin Walker of West Hartford; and Elizabeth Walker of West Hartford; her six grandchildren, Shannon Walker Blaisdell and her husband Brad of Herndon, VA; Jon Ryan Walker of Santa Monica, CA; Audrey Schwab and her husband Jason of Topanga, CA; Grant Walker and his fiancée Alexandra Raymond; Benjamin Walker and his wife Rosemary of North Hills, PA, and Colin Walker of Glenside; four great grandchildren, Phineas, Jaxson, Mackenzie and Lincoln Blaisdell of Herndon; as well as her sister-in-law and traveling companion Ann Walker of Newington and her dear friend and college classmate Patricia Welch of West Hartford. Her adored and unruly pugs, Deli and Sophie, are regulars at area pug meets and march annually in the Park Street Pug Parade. Jeanne, the cherished only child of Margaret (McAvay) and Frank Lambert, grandchild of Ellen (Chase) and Paul Lambert, and of Maria (Cassidy) and Michael McAvay, graduated from St. Joseph’s College with a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and earned a Master’s degree in Special Education from Central Connecticut State College. She was long involved in community work for those with special needs and served as President of HARC in the 1960s. For more than 30 years Jeanne taught elementary school in the Town of West Hartford. Her signature license plate, ABCETC, honored the four generations of her family who were public school teachers, including her aunt, Mary Elizabeth “Minnie” McAvay, her son Jonathan, his wife Cherie and their daughter Shannon. Jeanne loved movies, theater, playing bridge, reading mystery novels, crossword puzzles, dinner at A Vert in West Hartford, traveling and spending time with her family. Her plans of world travel were almost derailed in 1978 when she and her son David flew from Hartford to Toronto. As the plane began to taxi down the runway, Jeanne said, “I want to get out.” She returned to Hartford by train, took a day off from work to recover and never set foot on an airplane again. Despite that, she visited 49 of the 50 states, as well as most of Canada, the Caribbean and South America, even traveling to California through the Panama Canal. Her heart, however, belonged in Europe. She made more than a dozen transatlantic crossings on the Queen Elizabeth 2 and the Queen Mary, and became of a master of the complex web of trains that cross the continent, as well as the public transportation systems of many of the world’s capitols. Her favorite places to visit include Salishan Lodge in Lincoln City, Oregon; Lausanne and Vevey, Switzerland, Paris, London and Jensen Beach, Florida, where she often wintered with her high school friends Barbara and Jimmer Walsh, and George Humphrey. Jeanne had a life of challenges that would tax the strongest soul, as well as great adventures that she made sure to share with as many of her children and grandchildren as possible. She faced each day with courage, resilience and (always) humor, inspiring a family that includes three generations of executives in insurance and finance; five successful professionals in the creation of theater, television, film and theme parks; three designers and engineers; two generations of remarkable athletes and a two-year old mathematician who has successfully converted the color yellow into an integer. We can only aspire to a life as rich and generous as hers. The family would like to give special thanks to Freda McIntosh, Ganette Manuel, Badria Abdalla, Sandra Campbell and Maureen Barber for their extraordinary kindness to Jeanne during her final illness. Funeral services will be held Saturday, August 20 at 11 a.m. at St. Patrick-St. Anthony’s Church, 285 Church Street in Hartford. Burial will follow at Fairview Cemetery in West Hartford. Visitation will be Friday, August 19 from 6-8 p.m. at the Molloy Funeral Home, 906 Farmington Avenue, West Hartford. In lieu of flowers, a donation may be made to Favarh – The ARC of Farmington Valley (http://favarh.org).