In Loving Memory of

Jacqueline "Jacki" Garner

1964-2023

Jacqueline (Jacki) Jean (Minick) Garner of Garland, Texas, a dearly loved wife, mother,
daughter, sister, grandmother, and aunt, passed away on March 10th, 2023 at the age of
58. She was born in Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania on May 26th, 1964, the first of four
children of Janet Gail (Bailey) Minick and John Edwin Minick. Jacki was preceded in death
by her mother, Janet Gail (Bailey) Minick and her grandparents, Frances Louise (Kopczak)
Minick, John Martin Minick, Goldie (Barker) Bailey, and Jess Bailey. She is survived by her
daughters, Rikki Michelle Garner, Amanda Gail Garner, and Katheryn Renee Garner; her
grandson, Avery Beckett Savinov; her siblings, Jill Renee Baumann, Jon Thomas Minick,
and Jeffrey Scott Minick; her father, John Edwin Minick; her husband, Ricky Bruce Garner;
and many adoring nieces and nephews.

Jacki was a deeply devoted mother and grandmother, and a caring older sister and aunt.
For some, she was the big sister that they never had and for others she was a bonus
mother or grandmother. Jacki was a fantastic listener, a calm and easygoing presence, and
an unending source of level-headed advice to many. She loved to travel, especially on the
open sea. Jacki was an avid cruiser, obsessed with all things Disney, and a lifelong, die-
hard Pittsburgh Steelers fan. Most of all, Jacki loved her family, and fostered years of
wonderful memories by bringing her family together through perfectly planned family
vacations, and by hosting every Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. Her signature
Christmas cookies and Easter deviled eggs will be sorely missed.

In addition to her role as a beloved matriarch, Jacki was also a brilliant engineer and patent
attorney. After graduating from Hempfield Area High School in 1982, she earned a B.S. in
Electrical Engineering from the University of Pittsburgh in 1986. Jacki went on to earn a J.D.
from Southern Methodist University in Dallas in 1992 – an impressive feat that she achieved
while pregnant with Amanda and caring for Rikki as an infant. She worked at Texas
Instruments for 39 years, first as an engineer and later as a patent attorney, and was very
proud of her many accomplishments. Jacki was a dear friend to many in the law department
and incredibly valued by her team. She will be remembered not only for the way she
excelled at her work, but also for the way she carried herself – always calm and collected,
always offering a smile.

We are blessed to have known such a strong-willed, thoughtful, and caring person as Jacki.
We will all miss her terribly. Funeral services will be held in Jacki's honor at 3:30 PM on
Friday, March 17th, 2023 in Williams Memorial Chapel, with a visitation prior to the service
from 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM.

In Jacki's memory we offer the lyrics to one of her favorite songs – "Come Sail Away", by
Styx.

I'm sailing away
Set an open course for the virgin sea
Cause I've got to be free
Free to face the life that's ahead of me
On board, I'm the captain
So climb aboard
We'll search for tomorrow
On every shore
And I'll try, oh Lord, I'll try
To carry on
I look to the sea

Reflections in the waves spark my memory
Some happy, some sad

I think of childhood friends and the dreams we had

We lived happily forever
So the story goes
But somehow we missed out
On the pot of gold
But we'll try best that we can
To carry on
A gathering of angels
Appeared above my head
They sang to me this song of hope
And this is what they said, they said

Come sail away, come sail away, come sail away with me