| Jean
Louise Thompson (Wannall) Kamper
Index 1923-02
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| Born:
Died: Father: Mother: |
July 18, 1923
March 7, 1997 Walter Raymond Wannall (foster father) Rebecca Reeves Wannall (foster mother) |
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| Children: | Sheila Henderson Stoning | Sandra Henderson Gadbaugh |
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| Children: | Freddy Kamper (?)
Robert Kamper (?) Glen Kamper (?) |
Kevin Kamper (?)
Rebecca Kamper (?) (? - John?) |
| Although Jean was not officially a Wannall, she was as much a part
of the family as any of us, and we all thought of her and treated her as
a loving relative. Jean was the third of four girls born to a family named
Thompson. Her older sisters were Scharlet and Violet, and her younger sister,
Ruthy, died as an infant. But Jean’s parents wanted sons, not daughters,
and when Jean was nine months old they placed a classified ad in the newspaper
offering, “… Free to a good home 4 girls.” Rebecca and Ray Wannall
answered the ad and took Jean from her crib and into their home.
For all intents and purposes Jean became their fifth and youngest child.
For most of her childhood Jean was unaware she was a foster child (Rebecca and Ray never legally adopted her.) Rebecca would take her on occasion to visit and play with her two older sisters, but Jean did not find out who they were until she was a young teenager, when Rebecca finally told her the whole story. As an adult Jean stayed in touch with her sisters. Today we believe Scharlet, the oldest, has passed away, but Violet is living with her son David Blake in Texas. In about 1943 Jean married Wray Henderson and they had their first daughter, Sheila the following year. About a year later their second daughter, Sandy, arrived, but Wray and Jean split up five days later leaving Jean alone to provide for herself and the girls. Rebecca and Ray stepped in to help, but they were only able to take care of one of the babies, so Sheila went to live with them while Sandy was placed in the care of a family named Westfal. Jean and Wray were eventually divorced. In 1947 Jean married Fredrick Kamper, a career soldier in the U.S. Army, and her family was reunited. Together Jean and Freddy had six more children. Freddy, born in Mississippi on July 18, 1923, was a kind, soft-spoken man who loved his wife and children. When service pay proved to be not quite enough Freddy often worked an extra job to try and make ends meet. But thanks to Freddy’s occupation the family traveled extensively, living once in Germany and later in Japan, an assignment that provided Jean with some of her happiest memories. After Freddy retired the family settled in California. Jean was an avid reader (she was quite a Stepnen King fan) and pinochle player, always preferring Freddy as her card partner. In her later years she suffered from diabetes, but Freddy was there to watch over her and provide her care. Unfortunately Freddy died on November 22, 1996, and Jean passed away on the following March 7. They had been living in a semi-detached house that belonged to Sandy and her husband. In Progress: June 27, 2004 |
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