Jean E. (Estill) Stewart, RN

Jean (Estill) Stewart, R.N.

A retired obstetrical nurse at Walter Reed Army Medical Center where she served with distinction and was honored “In appreciation of 30 years of dedicated service from August 1962 to April 1994”. She served her final tenure as the first Lactation Specialist at Walter Reed. On May 5, 2024, she passed away in her sister’s arms into the nearer presence of God at the Acclaim Rehabilitation Facility in Jersey City, NJ.

Relatives and friends will be received at 2:00 pm on Saturday May 11, 2024, for the viewing at Grace United Methodist Church, 380 Kearny Avenue, Kearny NJ. The funeral service will begin at 3:00 p.m. at the same location with the repast following at 4:30 p.m. Entombment will be on Monday, May 13, 2024, in Fort Lincoln Cemetery, 3401 Bladensburg Rd, Brentwood, MD 

              A resident of Jersey City, Jean was born in Washington, D.C. the middle daughter of Thelma Christine Smith-Estill and Dr. Don V. Estill formerly of Kalamazoo, Michigan and Washington, D.C. Jean attended Lincoln Elementary & Junior High School in Kalamazoo and graduated from Central High School in Kalamazoo. She attended Western Michigan University for two years prior to entering nursing school, where she received her R.N. training at Provident School of Nursing in Chicago, Illinois. She received the highest score on the Illinois State Board Nursing Examination of any one in the Provident School of Nursing- which gave her reciprocity.

Her first nursing assignment was at the Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York City, where she met her husband, a mortician. As an accomplished musician, Jean played the clarinet, piano and violin in high school college bands and orchestras. She received a citation for her four years as a violinist in the Kalamazoo Junior Symphony and was a clarinetist in the WMU band. Finally, Jean and her sister, Ann, were honored guests at the WMU 2000 Home Coming Festivities in Kalamazoo. While at WMU she was a member of Kappa Phi Methodist Women’s Club. Jean was initiated as a patroness member of Sigma Alpha Iota Professional Music Fraternity for women at the national convention in Atlanta, Georgia. Of all her accomplishments her greatest one was of her late daughter Christil Marie Stewart. Jean was a proud and joyous mother. Her dedication to her work in lactation stemmed from her own journey as a mother. Christil was a light that touched all hearts, and a scholar as well.

              Jean was a member of First Methodist Church in Kalamazoo and later became a member of Gethsemane Baptist Church in Washington D.C. Like her sisters she was given three names, Flora Jean Marie. Her passing leaves a void in the lives of all who knew her. She leaves behind her beloved sister Dr. Ann Estill, Prof. DeWitt Dykes Jr., Mrs. Reida Dykes-Gardiner, Dr. Michelle Murrain, Dr. Laura Marie Christine Dykes-Wambugu, Charles Stewart and a host of other relatives, friends and Sorors.

Dr. Ann thanks all who have shared their prayers and condolences. Condolences and memories may be shared at: www.thiele-reid.com

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