Jean Anne (Smith) Clayton |
| Posted 2015-04-16 by Sharla |
| Arizona Daily Sun, Flagstaff, Arizona, Thursday, April 16, 2015 Jean Anne Smith Clayton, 84, of Flagstaff, Arizona, passed away on Saturday, April 11, 2015, at the Ridgefield Crossings Senior Living Center in Ridgefield, CT. Jean was born on August 20, 1930, in Gary, Indiana. She was the daughter of B. Ray Smith and Mary Studebaker Smith Leckrone. Jean graduated from Manchester College in Indiana with a major in Music. She married Harry Lee Hoover, from Glenford, Ohio, also a Manchester College graduate, and had three children together, Andrea Lee, Teresa Lane, and Robert Joel. In her younger days, Jean appeared on local television in Columbus, Ohio, on the Romper Room show, and as well, created and starred in her own Jeannie's TV Kindergarten, a very successful children's television show. She consequently had two guest appearances with the Captain on Captain Kangaroo, for which she traveled to New York City. Later in her life, she performed in her own jazz trio, The Jeannie K. Trio, where she met and married Jim Halderman. They moved to Phoenix, Arizona, where she became the first female advertising time saleswoman for a local radio station. She continued to perform and sing in amateur productions and choruses with Phoenix Symphony Orchestra, where her husband played bass. Jean moved to Flagstaff, Arizona, where she married Jerry Clayton. There, Jean was President of the Flagstaff Symphony Guild from 2000-2001, and was awarded Woman of the Year by that organization in 2002-2003. Jean is survived by her three children, Andrea Osbon and her husband, John Osbon, of Beverly, MA, Terri Nolte and her husband, Eric Nolte, of Beacon, NY, and Joe Halderman, of Norwalk, CT, her brother Richard L. Smith and his wife Debbie Smith, of Green Valley, Arizona, her grandchildren, Victoria Osbon and Max Osbon, of Beverly, MA, Henry Huntington, of Arcata, CA, Anna Lee Halderman, and Jimmy Halderman, of Ft. Collins, CO, Kyra Nolte of New Paltz, NY, and Devon Nolte of Northampton, MA. She was pre-deceased by her brother, Robert L. Smith, former Commander of the USS Truxton, the first nuclear-powered Navy destroyer. A private memorial service will be held at the home of Terri and Eric Nolte, at 3:00 pm on Saturday, April 18, 2015 at 129 North River Drive, Beacon, NY 12508. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be sent to the Flagstaff Symphony Association, P.O. Box 122, Flagstaff, AZ 86002. |
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