It is with a broken heart that I tell you that Jackie Wayne Vanya passed away on July 17, 2026.

In honoring Jackie’s wishes, there will be no obituary, no viewing, and no funeral service. Jackie’s wishes were to be cremated and scattered in the Gulf of Mexico as the tide comes back onto the Texas shoreline.

I now want to take time to cherish Jackie by sharing with you a few memories that he shared with me over the years. Each and every person that met and knew Jackie had a different and sometimes unique relationship with him. I know, understand, and respect the fact that Jackie lived a full and varied life before we ever met. So please allow me to share Jackie’s past as well as I can.

Jackie was born September 9, 1948, to Wilma Lou Quibodeaux. On the same day, Jackie’s grandmother, Mary Touchette, died in a tragic gas explosion. Jackie always thought of his grandmother as his yellow-haired angel that appeared to him during illnesses.

Wilma Q. Vanya and Roy R. Vanya raised a blended family of five boys with Jackie as the oldest. Jackie, Geoffrey, Richard, Robert, and Roy M. grew up early on in the Lake Jackson area and later childhood was spent in Houston’s Northshore neighborhood until Jackie’s sophomore year in high school. The Vanya family moved to Tulsa in Jackie’s junior year and settled in the Nathan Hale High School neighborhood. Jackie then attended Oklahoma Military Jr. College (Rogers State College) from 1967 to 1969. After college, Jackie served his country with honor during the Vietnam era.

Jackie was father to five children. With his first wife, Billie, he had sons Patrick and Jay. With his second wife, Paula, he shared Celeste, Sean, and Jack. Jackie is a grandfather and great-grandfather.

Jackie worked in the steel industry in Texas, California, and Pennsylvania. After a career in manufacturing, he returned home to Houston and chose to work in the HVAC industry. He once told me that “HVAC had to be recession-proof” in the Houston heat. After approximately 20 years at Century A/C Supply, Jackie retired to “pilot a recliner” as he put it. Jackie successfully managed that recliner for a bit over a decade. He spent his time with his neighbors, past co-workers, friends, and family. Not only keeping in contact with friends from Northshore High, Nathan Hale High, and Oklahoma Military Jackie was very active in the different Facebook communities for all of the schools he attended but also political groups of his choosing.

Jackie’s love of sports made two televisions a household requirement. He would watch anything that involved a ball. Literally anything. His ability to talk about any sport with anyone always brought joy to his voice.

I had the privilege of sharing my life with Jackie for almost 21 years. We met after I became a widow and he was divorced. We both were “older and wiser” when deciding to pursue our relationship. I can say in all honesty and with all my heart that Jackie Wayne was exactly the person that I was praying for in my life. Jackie never failed me. I cannot think of any higher love.

I grieve for each of you that will see this post. I know that each of you will have your memories of your relationship with Jackie. I hope that happy memories of Jackie come to you in the strangest moments and make you smile.