Jean Marie (Taylor) Heepke, 95, died at 12:48 p.m., Saturday, November 14, 2020 at Jerseyville Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.
Jean was born on November 30, 1924 in Belleville, Illinois and was the daughter of the late Joseph E. and Margareth (Schifferdecker) Taylor. She was raised in Belleville and graduated from Belleville Township High School in 1942.
Following graduation, she was employed as a bookkeeper with a brokerage firm with offices in the St. Louis Livestock Exchange Building at National Stockyards in Illinois. There she met Ralph W. Heepke of Edwardsville, and they married in 1948 at Eden United Church of Christ in Edwardsville.
In February of 1953, Ralph and Jean moved to the farm in Jerseyville. Together they built their home and renovated the farm that has been in the Heepke family for over 100 years.
Jean was an excellent cook and well known for her homemade cakes. She enjoyed baking and browsing through cookbooks and publications for new recipes to try.
Most of all, she enjoyed spending time with her family and her grandchildren.
She was an active member of Peace United Church of Christ and worked alongside other parishioners preparing and serving the weekly meals for the Jerseyville Rotary members. She served on the church council and was involved in the annual Fall Supper and salad luncheons hosted by the church.
In addition, she assisted Ralph with organizing the J.E.M. Fire Protection Association and helped with correspondence and the collection of annual fees for several years.
Surviving are three daughters and two sons in-law, Carla Heepke of Godfrey, Janet and Michael Cooke of Alton and JoAnn and Joseph Garland of Jerseyville; three grandchildren, Matthew Garland and his wife, Ruth, of Honolulu, Hawaii, Emily (Garland) Aguilan and her husband, Kevin of Great Falls, Montana and Michael Cooke II of St. Louis, Missouri; a brother and sister in-law, Allen and Nancy Taylor of Belleville; a brother in-law, Harold H. Heepke of Glen Carbon; as well as numerous nieces and nephews.
In addition to his parents, she was preceded in death by Ralph W. Heepke; a brother, Joseph E. Taylor Jr. and a nephew, Joseph E. Taylor III; a sister in-law, Betty (Schmidt) Heepke; as well as her in-laws, Henry C. and Mary (Pape) Heepke.
Due to COVID-19 concerns, private services will be held and burial will take place at Valhalla Memorial Park in Godfrey.
Memorials may be given to Peace United Church of Christ in Jerseyville.
Crawford Funeral Home in Jerseyville has been entrusted with arrangements.
