Jennifer Irene Amy Pursell

Jennifer Irene Amy Cranfill Pursell gracefully walked into the arms of her loving Heavenly Father on the evening of September 13, 2021. While our hearts are broken to have to tell her goodbye on this earth, we are comforted by her favorite phrase…a phrase that she and her daughter share as matching tattoos, “Everything happens for a reason.”

One of the great joys of Jennifer’s life was her family. She is survived by the love of her life, her loving husband of 27 years, Mike. Jennifer and Mike had the type of relationship that others would love to be able to emulate. The joy they shared together far outlasted the amount of time they were blessed with each other. Together, they loved to follow their kids around with whatever they were involved in, as well as camping and vacationing, mostly to Nashville, TN (Mike’s choice, not Jennifer’s). They were always able to embrace the moment and not take themselves…or anything else too seriously. The cold December morning they received the news that had just changed their lives, Mike told Jennifer to put her coat on before going out to the truck. Jennifer in her deadpan humor responded, “Yeah, good call, I don’t want to get sick.”

Jennifer and her daughter Caitlyn have always been one in the same. There was no denying their relation, and their relationship. As Caitlyn grew in her teenage/young adult years, the two were often confused for each other. It’s hard to know which one of them thought that was a bigger compliment. On one hand, Jennifer loved being confused for someone in her early twenties. On the other, Caitlyn was always honored to be compared with the person that she idolized so much, I believe she would say, “You can call me Jennifer any time you want…”. Caitlyn and her husband Billy have blessed Jennifer with three grandsons (Liam, Jaxon, and Brooks) that were without a doubt, the reason that Jennifer fought so hard to the end. Jennifer’s heart was wrapped up in those three boys and she found great joy in being their “Mimi”. She was the first one on the floor, the first one with a Hot Wheel or train in her hand, and the last one to leave the play site…of course only after cleaning it up. Jennifer fought hard to meet little Brooks, who was just born in May. While the two of them only had a few short months to bond, the relationship (and naps) they shared meant a great deal to Jennifer’s heart and spirit throughout her fight.
Her son Ryan bears much more of a physical resemblance to Mike. However, when he speaks, it is easy to hear what Jennifer might have sounded like if she were 6’1” and had red hair. It was a great joy watching the pride on Jennifer’s face as Ryan grew throughout the years. It didn’t matter if it was his accomplishments on the baseball field, or his service to the community at the fire department, Ryan made Jennifer proud of the young man that she helped raise. The pride that Jennifer had in Ryan made him secure enough to become the kind and compassionate young man that he is today. Jennifer would tell you that if there is anything that she could change, it would have been to see her son marry his wonderful fiancée, Natalie (Schapker).
One could go on and on about the amazing relationship that Jennifer had with her family, and anyone who is raising, or has raised, children hopes to have the relationship with their adult kids that Jennifer had with Caitlyn and Ryan. It was truly admirable to watch.

Jennifer is also survived by her mother, Kathy Bayne, her brother Don Cranfill, mother and father-in-law Larry and Susie Pursell, brother and sister-in-law Jason and Jenny Pursell, nephew Logan Cranfill, and nieces Lauryn, Lilly, and Lacey Pursell. She was preceded in passing by (and is probably currently fishing
with) her father, Donald Cranfill. Each of those people, in addition, could add much to Jennifer’s story, just as she added so much to each of their lives.

Jennifer was a servant. This was witnessed by anyone who had the privilege to be around her.
She served at the ballpark, whether in the concession stand, on the league board, or just giving of herself so that Ryan and Caitlyn’s friends and teammates had a place to crash and be fed. There are probably a few young adults in the Ellettsville area who believed they should have been listed under Jennifer’s children…that’s just who she was. Because when you met Jennifer, you were family.

She served her community as the business manager with Trilogy Health Services. She cared deeply for her coworkers and residents and treated them as her own. She was always jumping in to assist any way that she could and to adopt those who needed her the most...that’s just who she was. Because when you met Jennifer, you were family.
She served her family and friends any opportunity she had. Whether you were invited to her house to sit around a campfire and ride 4 wheelers in the woods, or she was organizing the pitch in and making sure that you only had a couple of things to bring, so that she could bring five croc-pots full of “stuff she just threw together…” that’s just who she was. Because when you met Jennifer, you were family.

While nobody would have chosen this route, and we all wish we would have had more time to enjoy the wonderful person that Jennifer was, I tell you that Jennifer was thankful for the opportunity that her family and friends had to show her just how much she meant to them. Many people aren’t afforded the chance to have nine months to say “goodbye”. Jennifer was flooded with cards, flowers, posters, meals, prayers, and kind words…and through her last moments, they brought great comfort and peace to her as she fought her battle. She knew she was not alone, you made her know that you fought with her and supported her on this journey. For that, she thanks you.

Jennifer’s life will be celebrated by a visitation from 11am-2pm and service at 2pm at Lifeway Baptist Church (Ellettsville) on Saturday, September 18th. Jennifer’s ask in lieu of flowers, is that donations be made in her memory to the Owen County Humane Shelter.

In her passing, we grieve for Mike. We grieve for Caitlyn and Ryan. We grieve for her family and friends. But we know that “everything happens for a reason.” We know this because Jennifer reminded us of it with every moment she had. While we may never understand the reasoning on earth, we are comforted by the fact that Jennifer now understands the reason for her fight. We rejoice that she is no longer in pain, that she fought…and she won…because that’s just who she was.

As you exited her home, you saw a picture with the quote “The best things in life are the people we love, the places we’ve been, and the memories we’ve made along the way.”

We are thankful to have had the chance to love Jennifer, we are thankful to have been a part of her journey, and we are ever so thankful for the memories we made with her along the way.