Jeanie Hawkins

Jeanie Hamilton Hawkins, age 76, died early Monday morning, February 23, at her center city home in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania after a brief battle with cancer.

Jeanie was the wife of William Hawkins, with whom she shared fifty-five years of marriage. They were pen pals at fifteen--Jeanie in Philadelphia and Will in Malvern, England.

She went to Friends Select high school in Philadelphia, graduating in 1966, and pursued studies at the University of Pennsylvania.

She began her business career at Transworld Feature Syndicate -- a New York-based company with offices in London and Paris -- which sold feature material and photos to publishers worldwide. Jeanie worked in the New York and London offices. She then worked with her mother, Jean Breig, at Breig Associates, the first woman-owned advertising agency in Philadelphia. Jeanie then joined John Wanamaker department store in center city in the mid seventies, and became divisional manager 1992-97. When Lord & Taylor took over the store, she became Human Resources Director 1997-2006, and together with other senior staff, she helped build a successful service-oriented team, resulting in the number one performance in the company. Her excellent interaction and leadership skills were consistently recognized. After retirement, she continued to stay in touch with many of the staff from those years.

Jeanie and Will loved to travel, often building trips around Will's distance running, including marathons. Jeanie will be remembered for her smile, warmth, patience (especially with Will), and the care she showed others. One friend said, "When I think of Jeanie, I think of sunshine and flowers, compassion and generosity, leadership and encouragement." Her strength during her other battle -- progressive MS -- was inspiring. Her love for animals, especially the many cats she and Will adopted or fostered, was profound.

Jeanie is survived by her husband, William.

We will celebrate Jeanie's life on her birthday, March 23, in the Community room at Independence Place Condominiums, from 6-8pm -- 241 S. 6th Street, Philadelphia 19106.

Contributions to her memory can be made to the Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) at 100 N. 2nd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106.