Janet Hall Hessey

preceded in death by her parents, Nell and Robin Hall; her great-grandson, Anthony Best; her

husband, Pat Hessey; and her brother, Bobby Hall. She is survived by her daughters, Teresa

(Danny) Hobbs; and Lynette (Mike) Culbreth; her grandchildren, Kimberly (Jason) Best; J.D.

(Amanda) Hobbs; Megan Culbreth and Madison Prince; and Michael (Lindsey) Culbreth; her

great-grandchildren, Daniel and Joshua Best; Avery, Addie, R.J., and Junie Hobbs; and Henry

and Charlie Culbreth; her sister, Cherri Manning; many precious cousins spread across Michigan

and Tennessee, including, Nancy Ruth Key and Ann Hall Martin (both of whom she spent much

of her childhood with); many dear nieces, including Stephanie Thompson (who she was like a

second mother to); and nephews, including Clay Hall (her “Clay Baby”) who also preceded her in

death. Clay was her first born nephew, close in age to her first born daughter, and was a constant

joy to her. He literally became her minister and helped her (and all of the family) through many

crises. She was immensely proud of him. Janet always counted her cousins more like siblings

and her nieces and nephews as additional children and grandchildren. Her love and commitment

to her family knew no bounds. And, we must not forget her surviving beloved companions,

Jackson, Elvis, and Tippy. She was fierce in her love for her animals at all times. They were her

babies!

Janet, although born in Nashville, where her grandparents were, grew up in Tullahoma,

Tennessee. Stories of her precocious attitude and zeal for life would make one shudder now.

She even spoke recently of how amazing it was that she survived her childhood. Her father told

the story that one day he was coming home from work and noticed something red way up on the

water tower that was behind their house. Yes, it was Janet’s little red coat. She was not scared

of anything. She told how she climbed out her bedroom window (2nd floor) and then slide down

the roof catching her feet on the gutter to prevent slipping off the roof. She liked it up there to

read and watch the world. Early on Janet was pouring through books. She began reading at an

early age and never stopped. She told stories of reading to her grandmother as a very small child.

Her grandmother paid her a dime to read to her but Janet was so excited to do it. She also said

most of the books were “maybe” age inappropriate but she was reading. Also amazing is that

her older brother survived her reading habit. She said she read a book about the circus one time

and decided she would give knife throwing a try. Got her Mother’s knives out of the kitchen and

stood him up against a door. Can you guess the rest? Yes, he ended up going to the doctor for

stitches. And, that was not the first nor the last time. Her brother was always a willing (as she

described it) participant in her escapades and usually ended up at the doctor or hospital. When

Janet was a bit older she asked for a baby sister and once again she got her wish. She was put in

charge of babysitting her little sister. Baby sister remembers being put in the basket of Janet’s

bike and told to hang on. Yes, baby sister survived too.

Her senior year the family moved to Nashville where she graduated from Isaac Litton

High School in 1953. She never forgot her lifelong friends and classmates from Tullahoma

High though and was always instrumental in planning their class reunions and keeping in touch

with them. Janet married (very young) and began her family. Her two daughters were her life!

She was the best mother and dedicated her life to their well being. She was a fun mother,

spending summers at the lake with them, boating and fishing and skiing, blackberry picking,

climbing trees to pick pinecones. Rainy days were spent reading and sewing. She made most

of her girl’s clothes for many years. She loved gardening and cooking (collecting cookbooks was

a lifelong hobby). She had some great friends that she went exploring with all over Tennessee

seeking out quaint restaurants and antique stores. And, was a regular at auctions. She loved the

competition and getting a bargain.

And, yes, Janet worked when her children started school. She worked for the State of

Tennessee early on and then worked for the Metro Board of Education for over 30 years, first as

a school secretary (remember those friends we talked about - well they all worked together in the

same school for many years and the story goes they were “trouble”), they were all wonderful,

smart educators and would go out on the limb for their students, but they would also bend the

rules just a bit now and then. She worked the last few years of her career with Metro as the

receptionist at the Board. She knew everyone and was always called on to organize the blood

drive, among other things. For approximately 20 years of that same period of time Janet worked

for Bank of America (formerly Commerce Union) on the evening shift as an auditor. Hard

worker does not even begin to describe Janet.

After retirement and the death of her dear father, Janet put all her skills and work ethic

into volunteering. She volunteered for Alive Hospice and Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital for

over 10 years. She also volunteered and worked with the Vanderbilt Sewing Club. All while

also babysitting and caring for her grandchildren (the absolute loves of her life!) As much fun

and involved as she was as a Mother, she was double fun as a grandmother (a/k/a “Granny”) - the

youngest grandmother of any of their friends and so much fun many of their friends asked to be

adopted by her. And, when her grandchildren made her a great-grandmother, well, life reached a

new high for her. She was fierce in her love for and protection of and caring for her family!

As mentioned before, Janet loved animals (all animals). She personally rescued many,

both wild and domestic. She never complained when her children or grandchildren brought a

stray home, because she was the one that taught them to do it! She would donate time and

money everywhere she could to help. She asked that we all continue that for her; and

specifically, asked that in lieu of flowers she would appreciate donations be made to your local

animal rescue. Always thinking of others!

Visitation with the family will be held on Saturday, September 11, 2021 from 4:00 pm to 8:00

pm at Woodlawn-Roesch Patton Funeral Home. On Sunday, September 12, 2021 visitation will

be held at 10:00 am; services at 11:00 am; and burial at 12:00 pm.