Juanita Eason Graham, former Webster Groves preschool teacher

Juanita Eason Graham died of COVID-19 on March 28. She was 55 years old.

Juanita had previously worked for almost 20 years at Walter Ambrose Family Center in Webster Groves (but hadn’t worked there since 2018) and had a genuine love for young children that was expressed in her calm cheerful demeanor. She was, simply put, amazing at her vocation.

Juniata’s doctor had originally thought her cough was a symptom of seasonal allergies at a regular visit on March 16 and sent her home with a prescription for Zyrtec. Caring for her husband who had been diagnosed with pneumonia after the couple took a trip, Juniata’s health continued to worsen. She went into the hospital on March 25, tested positive for COVID-19 and within three days had passed away. The day she was admitted to the hospital, the friend from out of town who Juniata and her husband had visited called to tell them that a woman Juniata had sat next to had tested positive for COVID-19.

Juniata Graham is missed deeply by her husband of 18 years, her mother, her family, everyone that she worked with, and the former preschoolers who she introduced to school for the first time.

Juniata’s husband wishes people to take social distancing and all the precautions seriously, because COVID-19 is not a joke.

Sources:

• Juniata Graham obituary on Smith Life Memorial Centre 
• ‘Take it seriously,’ widower of former Webster Groves preschool teacher says of COVID-19 – STL Today 
• Former Webster Groves Preschool Teacher Dies Of Complications From COVID-19 – Webster-Kirkwood Times 
• Webster Groves Man Implores Others To Take COVID-19 Seriously After Wife’s Death – Webster-Kirkwood Times