Maude Grant

Maude Grant was a woman who believed in and cherished God’s power and taught her family not to worry about the things we have no control over. But, listening to her grandson describe his indomitable grandmother, it becomes clear that there wasn’t much that Maude didn’t have control over. At 19 she moved her family from Shreveport to Dallas to find work to support and raise her ten younger siblings. She worked hard and loved well. When her grandson Jamyron was eight years old, he came to live with his grandmother who raised him and his sister. Maude taught them about appreciating life, loving and cherishing the moment. She taught them the importance of structure and that appearance makes a difference, and every Sunday morning, she would iron their clothes for the following week. She taught Jamyron that while as a man he would have to work, he should cherish his family, not money, a lesson he is now passing on to his own children.

When Maude entered the room, she filled it with energy. She was a grandmother to everyone she encountered there. At a family gathering after Maude died, the lights in the room flickered the whole time the family gathered, stopping when the party ended. Maude’s presence was like that in life. She was a woman of great strength who loved by doing, and Jamyron said it was difficult even in the last months of her life to get her to rest because she wanted to cook and care for her family to her end.

In the last three months of Maude’s life, her grandchildren committed to making her comfortable by catering to her every need. They quit their jobs to give back to the grandmother who had dedicated herself to them. This caused financial stress, and Jamyron says, “we were suffering in silence and then organizations like yours came and put the foot in the door to help us.” Project 4031 was able to help in a small way by paying their utility bill. As a result of such assistance, Jamyron and his sister were able to keep Maude close and give her a beautiful, well-cared-for end of life.

When Maude died, Jamyron told us he was at a loss. As she lay in his arms, his concern was with how they would be able to pay to bury her. He went to the funeral home, feeling desperate, only to be told that Maude, without anyone knowing, had purchased her plot and planned her funeral 30 years before. Jamyron recognized the power of God reflected in the power of his amazing grandmother. Maude was still taking care of them, even after her death. At Project 4031, we are profoundly privileged to have shared a small moment in the life of this amazing woman and grandmother.