Jean Rogers Lewis lived a life characterized by exemplary service, uncommon fortitude, and extraordinary faith. She was born on a farm in Johnson County, Texas, where she learned discipline and developed a strong work ethic from an early age. She graduated from nearby Venus High School as valedictorian. She was active in the Methodist Church in Venus where she met Clayton Lewis, who was serving as a student pastor for the church, his first appointment in a forty-one year career in ministry. Jean was a full partner in ministry with her husband for all fifteen churches he pastored, serving in a wide variety of roles including singing in the choir, teaching, United Methodist Women, and in other leadership and administrative capacities. She did so while raising three sons and later was employed in the corporate world, with most of her years being in the airline industry. She finished her working life at Southwest Airlines where she held a succession of increasingly responsible positions, ending as the founding director of SWA's Ticket by Mail program. It was through her work in the airlines industry that she and her husband were able to live out their love of travel by making numerous trips covering five continents.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Clayton Lewis; parents, James and Ruby Rogers; her sister, Maxine Rogers Hogg; her brother, Charles Rogers; and her granddaughter, Megan Lewis. She is survived by three sons and daughters in-law: Mark and Linda Lewis of Denton, Texas, Stephen and Virginia Lewis of Denver, Colorado, and Jim and Cheryl Lewis of Arlington, Texas; four grandchildren, three great-grandchildren, and one great-great-grandchild. A memorial service will be held at First United Methodist Church in Arlington, 313 N. Center St., Arlington, TX 76011, on Wednesday, October 29, at 11:00 a.m. which follows a private graveside service. Memorial gifts may be made to the Clayton and Jean Lewis Internship Endowment at Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University; The Wilkinson Center in Dallas; First United Methodist Church in Arlington; or the SPCA of Texas (Dallas).
