L. Jean Ergott bid her final goodbyes to everyone she touched on this earth on July 21st, 2024.  Her mother and father, Mary and Daniel Reitz, her brothers Bill and Tom Reitz, her husband Lowell Ergott and her son Dan Ergott, were all waiting patiently to greet her.

This world was more beautiful place for having Jean in it. She brightened her family's lives on December 23, 1927, welcomed into the world by her parents, Daniel and Mary. Her older brother Bill showed her how to stand strong and defend herself against any hardship; her younger brother Tom taught her the importance of kindness, patience and compassion.

Jean studied at Avis High School, where she would meet her future husband, Lowell Evan Ergott. Her senior yearbook, when documenting her future goals, tells us that what she most wanted to do was to "capture a sailor's heart", and capture it she did. After Lowell had returned with the Coast Guard from sea, after WWII, the couple married on April 4, 1946.

Jean and Lowell lived in Avis after their marriage. They lived a beautiful life together, and eventually their son, Dan, joined their adventure on September 23, 1948. He was the light of Jean's life and he would go on to be her most present and devoted protector. Jean worked at Woolrich, first as a seamstress, then moving up to assistant supervisor, the position she would eventually retire from. She also volunteered her time to the Avis Fire Hall Ladies' Auxiliary and worked at the local election polls for several decades.

After retirement, Jean and Lowell's adventures continued. Not ones to sit quietly in rocking chairs, they took to the world instead. They traveled, camped bought a winter home in Florida and made many friends all over the country. Their lives were full of music, laughter, good friends and great love.

For all their love of adventure, their greatest love was their family. Dan and his wife Mary Ellen gave Jean and Lowell two beautiful granddaughters, Beth (Bob) Cowfer and Karen (Tom) Jodun. Beth would go on to give them two great grandchildren, Brittany (Sam) Bardo and Brett (Erica) Kepler, as well as two bonus great grandchildren, Kayla (Mason) Horning and Frankie (Tyler) Cowfer. Karen would give them two great grandchildren as well, Danielle (Zachary) Jodun and Becca Jodun. Among these great grandchildren, they were also blessed with a multitude of great great grandchildren, Auron Confer, Carter Jodun, Cambree Rhinehart, Aubrey, Landon and Grant Horning, and Nevaeh Cagle; and a niece Joyce (Kenny) Fry.

Jean had a way if making each one of her grandchildren feel special. Every last one will argue that they were Grammy's favorite and every last one is correct. She loved every one of them for who they were and what made them special. She knew how to love each member of her family in the way they needed to be loved. Her instincts for this and her unmatched capacity for kindness and patience will be embedded in the hearts of her family for the rest of their days.

Her merits did not start and end with compassion, however. Jean was a true force of nature. Despite her size (which was smaller than most people over the age of 12), she radiated strength and wisdom in a way that immediately inspired respect and admiration. She chose her words carefully to ensure she was only putting kindness into the world. Unlucky was anyone who mistook her kindness for weakness; at barely five feet, she was an absolutely commanding force and beacon of strength. One of her family's favorite Grammy Jean legends was how, only armed with a broom, she would chase alligators several feet longer than herself out of her yard to protect the herons nesting there. None of the family ever did feel the wrath of her broom, but none of them doubted her prowess to risk testing it either.

Jean lived to the age of 96, but for most of her years on this earth, she forgot to be old. She was too busy enjoying life and making memories. All of her babies remember trying to keep up with her on her banana bike. She would take them all camping, roll up her pants to splash in the stream and dry off by the fire right alongside them. She would hike up mountains and cross over streams on fallen logs all to satisfy her grandkids' taste for adventure. She was the default rollercoaster ride partner and had a withering stare ready for any ride attendant who even implied she was too old to join. She redefined the word grandmother to her family, because she chose to live a life outside of what was expected. She used to joke, when someone would refer to her as great grandmother, "Well I'm not that great." It was the only time we've ever heard her be wrong.

Jean Ergott was so many things to so many people. This world is truly more beautiful for having had her in it. Her life and memory is impossible to sum up, even if we had a whole novel; to devote to the task. Those who knew Jean will always remember her as strong, wise, loving, hilarious and absolutely unforgettable. She is not gone; she will forever live on in her family, who have been so touched and shaped by her unconditional love, that we will carry a piece of her into every day we face for the rest of our lives.

Services will be private at the convenience of the family. Arrangements were entrusted to Rearick-Carpenter Funeral Home, Jersey Shore. To leave a condolence for the family, please visit www.rearickcarpenter.com.