Janette Helen (Ellis) Clarke

Janette Helen Ellis Clarke (aka Stubborn ol’ Lady, Nanny and My Favorite Victorian) passed July 2, 2019. She is survived by her husband Robert Gordon Clarke, and her three children Leslie Marie Lamkin, Cheryl Lynn Paul, and Keith Gordon Clarke. She was also an avid participant in her five grandchildren (John T. Lamkin Jr., Mindy L. Traveria, Corrianne O. Lamkin, Ryan G. Clarke, Travis W. Clarke) and four great grandchildren's (Alexandra Lamkin, Olivia Lamkin, Gloria Traveria, Westley Traveria) lives, supplying endless hugs and chocolate milk. 

She was born  April 29, 1935 to Leona Bovay (daughter of Ruth and Floyd Bovay) and Harold Ellis in Potsdam, New York, where she spent her high school years playing tennis and was involved with drama . Then, December 1954, Robert Clarke asked the most beautiful and sweetest woman in the world (Janette) to marry him, they were married on January 29, 1955 in the Methodist Church in Potsdam. From there they lived in Akron Ohio and Beaumont Texas. They traveled extensively and together, had an exciting life, eventually settled in Cypress, TX with their three children and building a wonderful home full of laughing kids and hummingbird figurines. 

Janette was an avid gardener, creating works of art in the backyard of their home with paths that her grand-kids swore led to fairy homes. Also a fierce Parcheesi and Liverpool player, she would often best her husband, kids, friends, and grand-kids with a sweet, pleased smile on her face, winning with the same aplomb that she applied to everything she did in life. She baked the most delicious banana and zucchini breads in the world, passing those recipes onto her grandchildren with the knowledge that they would continue to bring that sweetness into the world. She was a world traveler, always wanting to explore new and unique places such as Europe, Russia, Africa and the Far East. She instilled in her children a love of life, travel, games, and a kindness that will live on forever as she passed those same values onto her children and grandchildren. 

Janette was, quite simply, one of the sweetest and most engaging person who has ever walked this Earth, and she will be greatly missed by family, friends, and hummingbirds around the world.

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