Jan Gilbert Tenery

Celia Jan Gilbert Tenery died peacefully in her sleep on December 30th, 2020 in Austin, Texas at the age of 69. She was loved immensely by her husband Andy Tenery and her daughter Dana Heidkamp of Austin. She is also survived by: siblings Lisa Bosson, Stan Gilbert, and Susan Gilbert; brother-in-law Ed Bosson; nieces and nephew Rachel Fortlage, Sharla Vitsentzos, Rotan Bosson and Claryce Bosson; step-daughters Laura Morton and Jessica Sinn; sons-in-law Tom Morton and Jarred Sinn; and granddaughters Madeline and Ruby Morton. She is preceded in death by her parents Stan and Betty Gilbert.

Jan attended Baylor and Trinity Universities and then went on to pursue her masters in Deaf Education at the well-respected Gallaudet University in Washington D.C. She taught in a wide range of places in Utah, Ohio, and Texas and especially loved teaching students with multiple disabilities. She dedicated most of her career to teaching Deaf students of all ages and worked at Texas School for the Deaf for 9 years. She also worked as a vocational counselor and in job placement for youth and adults with disabilities.

Jan and her husband, Andy, enjoyed taking trips together and had the opportunity to travel to many different places for Andy’s work conventions. Over the years, they visited New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Portland, Oregon; St. Petersburg, Florida; Chicago, Illinois; Las Vegas, Nevada; and Newport News, Virginia. Jan also loved going to the beach and visited beaches in both Texas and California. She especially loved seeing the release of the endangered Kemp Ridley sea turtles in Port Aransas and staying at the Lighthouse Inn in Rockport, Texas. Although she visited such beaches as Moonlight and Crown Point in San Diego, her favorite thing to do there was spend time with her granddaughters, Madeline and Ruby, who affectionately referred to her as “Janma”.

Jan’s daughter, Dana, was her pride and joy. They were two peas in a pod and always had a very close relationship. Dana moved home from New York City to help care for her mother the last two years of her life. Their favorite things to do together were going to local theater and grabbing late night dessert at Kerbey Lane or seeing a movie after pizza and tiramisu at Tony C’s.

Jan was an avid reader and faithful penpal to many friends from throughout her life. She took comfort in her faith in God and remained Christian all her life. In lieu of flowers, Jan would have appreciated donations to the Billy Graham Association or the TSD Foundation benefiting Texas School for the Deaf.