Janeice “Scoopy” Ballance Lester was born on May 21, 1934 in Kansas City, Kansas, the seventh child of the late Arthur J.H. Sr. and Mary Murphy Ballance. She was a tiny baby and the doctor was not sure she would survive. Her older sister, Wylma, did not give up: She carried Scoopy around on a little pillow, fed her, and dressed her in doll clothes.

Scoopy’s childhood memories include going to the Regal Theater every Friday to see movies; her favorites were Hop-Along Cassidy and Tarzan. She was spirited even as a child: she recalls getting only one spanking, and her mother had to chase and catch her first. Scoopy survived when the car she was driving was hit by a train. When she looked up and saw the train coming, she felt certain she was going to die, but found herself completely unafraid. Scoopy said that after that she wasn’t afraid of much of anything.

Scoopy attended Douglas Elementary School and later Sumner High School; she was a member of the Class of 1952. She was employed at Scotch-Deluxe Cleaners and Tri-State Tank Corporation, in both cases as a bookkeeper. She retired in 1977, saying if she was going to have to “work like a dog,” she figured she might as well work for herself. She opened “Jan’s Kitchen” in Kansas City, Kansas where she was one of Kansas City’s premiere bakers. She made some of the best tasting and most beautiful cakes in the city. Scoopy also loved working with flowers and traveling.

On January 27, 1977 she was united in holy matrimony to George Lester. They were married until his passing in 1998.

Scoopy was a member of Pleasant Hill Baptist Church in Edwardsville, Kansas, and later totally dedicated her life to Christ in 1972 at Freeman Avenue Church of God, now known as Kansas City Community Church. She served faithfully in the church as a Sunday School teacher, choir member and officer, and member of the Board of Trustees. She was also a member of the Benevolence Committee and of the Women of the Church of God. Scoopy was a great organizer (and order giver). For many years she organized the annual Harvest Day celebration at Freeman Avenue Church of God.

She was the mother of two of the most beautiful and dedicated daughters in the world, Sarah Denise and Theresa Cheryl. They were all for one and one for all—a three strand cord that could not be broken. Scoopy said she was more proud of her two daughters than anything else in her life.

Scoopy will be remembered as a women with an indomitable spirit who was never afraid to speak her mind. She will also be remembered for her generosity, her love for her family, her quick wit, and her sharp sense of humor. She was interested in and loved to converse with people of all ages.

Scoopy was preceded in death by her husband, George Lester, both of her parents, Arthur J.H. and Mary Murphy Ballance, daughter Sarah Denise Davis, brothers Arthur Ballance and W.H. Ballance, and sisters Wylma Easterwood, Sarah Dillsworth, and Nadine Davis.

She leaves her loving daughter, Theresa C. Jones; four grandchildren, James Davis Jr. (Juanita), Theresa Davis, Angela Jones, and Phillip (Tneika) Jones, and six great grandchildren: Jazmine Davis, James Davis III, Jordan Davis, Taylor Jones, and Khalib Jones. She is survived by two brothers, Errol (Nancy) Ballance, Sr. of Kansas City, Kansas and JR (Faye) Ballance of Jamaica and one sister, Aaron Doyle of Las Vegas, Nevada. Scoopy also leaves behind her loving goddaughter, Felisha Alcola of Riverside, Missouri and many special friends in the Kansas City area, including Jean (Arthur) Tolefree, Lula (Wilbert, Sr,) Jones, and Keaton Cofield. She will be dearly missed by a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, extended family members, and friends --too numerous to name but far too special to be forgotten.

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