Obituary of Jamie Doris Goodwin

Jamie Doris Goodwin, 89, passed away Thursday, June 22, 2017 at Bethany Home in Lindsborg, Kansas. 

Jamie was a beautiful woman inside and out.  She had a wonderfully infectious laugh that was easy and frequent.  She was a warm and caring woman who was always friendly and would strike up a conversation with everyone she encountered.

Jamie was born on January 4, 1928 in Sparta, Tennessee where she grew up and attended elementary and high school.  Her parents were Frank and Ruby Cantrell and she had an older sister Frances and a younger brother Kelly.

Times were difficult for them during the depression and she lived with her paternal grandmother from the age three to six. Her father’s youngest brother was still living at home and insisted that Jamie learn to read.  By the time she started school, she impressed the teacher with her reading skills.  The family moved frequently and she was unable to finish her third grade.  They moved to the small town of Doyle where she enrolled in fourth grade and was quite relieved when she got all A’s.  She finished eighth grade there, then attended Sparta High School.  Her mother worked in the silk mill and later at the shirt factory. During high school Jamie also worked at the shirt factory. 

One day in 1944, Russell Goodwin, of Flagler Colorado, a handsome army paratrooper spotted and met Jamie on a bridge in Sparta as he and a buddy came into town. He was smitten. They kept in touch through letters and in December he came to Sparta and had Christmas dinner with Jamie and her aunt with whom she was living while going to school.  They were married March 1, 1945.  Following the end of the war, they moved to Flagler where they made their home for 53 years. 

Their marriage was blessed with three children, Peggy, Terry and Curtis.  During the years Peggy and Terry were very young, Jamie was a stay-at-home mom.  She was an extraordinary seamstress and kept her daughter and her self well dressed.  She taught Sunday school and Vacation Bible School, was a youth group sponsor at the church summer camps and brushed up on her secretarial skills through La Salle Extension University.  In 1960, Tom Creighton, a part-time attorney in Flagler, hired Jamie as a secretary.  Shortly after she started working, she found out she was expecting their third child, Curtis.  She was happy and believed that each child was a special blessing.

In 1961 Jamie took a full time position at the First National Bank of Flagler and spent the next 31 years working in all areas.  She enjoyed her work and loved serving the public and assisting them in any way she could. 

The church was a very important part of Jamie’s life.  She accepted Jesus Christ as her Savior at the age of 10. Her faith in God was steadfast and believed he had answers so many of her prayers.  She was a long time active member of the First Congregation Church of Flagler serving in any way she could. 

Russell retired eight years before Jamie, and he enjoyed having a nice lunch prepared for her when she walked in the door.  After her retirement from the bank in December of 1993, they enjoyed having more time to spend with family and friends. 

She always had some kind of dessert and coffee on hand to serve to anyone who stopped by for a visit.  She and her beloved husband, Russ were avid card players and were in several card clubs. Their favorite was bridge.  She loved to entertain and they would frequently host dinner parties. Because of their love of dancing, they traveled into Colorado Springs to take dance lessons.  

In June of 1999, Jamie and Russ sold their home in Flagler and moved to Goodland, KS to be near their son Curtis, and wife Tina and their children Chloe and Alex. They loved helping with the children, watching them grow and attend their activities.

In March of 2014 son Curt and family relocated to Lindsborg KS and Jamie moved for the last time into Bethany Home in Lindsborg KS.

Left to cherish her memories are her children, Peggy Long and her husband Art of Palm Harbor FL and Pagosa Springs CO; Terry Goodwin of Rockville TN; and Curtis Goodwin and his wife, Tina of Lindsborg KS.

Also surviving her are 6 grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren, one sister-in-law plus numerous nieces and nephews.

Funeral services will be held on July 1, 2017 at 2:00 pm at the First Congregational Church of Flagler, Colorado with Pastor Brandon Goad officiating.  Interment will follow in the Flagler Cemetery.

Memorial contributions may be made the First Congregational Church of Flagler or Bethany Home.  Memorials may be sent in care of Christian Funeral Home, 103 N. Washington, Lindsborg, Kansas 67456.