Anna Jeanette Foster Bradshaw met her savior Jesus Christ face to face on Feb. 26. There to greet her were her parents, David and Louise Foster, grandparents and a rich heritage of family and friends that shared her love for The Lord.

Jeanette was born on May 24, 1932, in Shawnee in the home of one her favorite aunts. The daughter of a church “healer” and bi-vocational pastor, she called many towns in eastern Oklahoma home. Known by her family and friends as “Anna Jean” in the early years, she used to laugh about how it took two entire moves to change her name to Jeanette before her family followed suit. She was graduated valedictorian from Anadarko High School in 1950 and completed her undergraduate degree in English and theatre at Oklahoma Baptist University in 1954. During graduate school she was introduced to Gerald Bradshaw by her mother and Gerald’s twin sister, Allene, at a First Baptist Church event, and thus the pursuit of the love of his life began. It took almost two years, Gerald says because Jeanette was already “dated up,” but he did finally win her hand in marriage on Nov. 24, 1956. A marriage like their’s, as true soul mates, has been one admired by many but only achieved by few.   

The mother of three, David, Ann and Sara, Jeanette was only a thesis away from completing her Master’s degree in English when she opted to care full time for her growing family and business. Always intrigued with technology, Jeanette was on the cutting edge of the insurance agency automation world and was one of the first to champion its adaptation in the state. She served as the president of the national user’s group for the USF&G Leader System and negotiated the transition to Applied Systems, the largest and most highly recognized and respected automation vendor and users group in the world. A well-respected expert on insurance automation field, Jeanette was often sought out for advice and assistance, while she also served as the Vice President of Operations of the Bradshaw Agency, a position she held for 40 years.

A second generation Oklahoma Baptist University Bison, Jeanette was always proud of her and her father’s legacy at OBU. Prior to her illness, she was a very active, faithful and multi-termed member of the Board of Trustees and also served on the National Board of Development for many very happy years. Whenever a fellow Bison was found you could always be assured that before the conversation was over Jeanette would engage in a little “Ka-Rip” just to make sure the other Bison was on their toes. Jeanette was a steadfast and gifted follower of Jesus Christ and used her gifts of hospitality and administration faithfully by Gerald’s side serving at First Baptist Church and later at Eagle Heights Baptist Church in a variety of capacities. She enjoyed her book club, investment club, helping with the Stillwater Wondertorium and was a favorite weekly server in the lunchroom at Sunnybrook Christian School for several years. A woman of many esteemed titles, but her favorite was by far Grammy as she was fondly called by her two grandchildren, Adam and Katie Ray. Jeanette will be sorely missed by her husband, Gerald, son, David Bradshaw of New York, daughter Ann Bradshaw of Houston, daughter and son-in-law, Sara, and Steve Ray of Stillwater, sister-in-law, Allene Owen, of Stillwater and countless extended family and friends.  

Gifts in lieu of flowers are encouraged to be given to the Eagle Heights Baptist Church Building Fund and the Foster-Bradshaw Family Scholarship at Oklahoma Baptist University in care of Palmer Marler Funeral Home at 5106 N. Washington, Stillwater, Okla., 74075.

A celebration of Jeanette’s life will be held at Eagle Heights Baptist Church at 1 p.m. on Friday, followed by a reunion reception at 2617 N. Jardot Road, Stillwater, Okla., 74075. Public visitation will be held on Thursday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and on Friday from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at the Palmer Marler Funeral Home, located at 5106 N. Washington in Stillwater. Condolences may be sent to the family via an online guestbook at www.pmcfh.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pmcfh