Virginia Westby

Virginia “Ginny” Westby, 95, of Nederland, passed peacefully on Sunday, May 18, 2025 at HCA Hospital in Houston, Texas.

A native of Windsor, Colorado, Ginny was raised on a farm in Bridger, Montana, by her parents Jake and Amelia Hahn.  Her “git er done” performance on the farm was stellar, with one exception of the haystack that burned down unexpectedly.  Jake was not happy.  After graduating high school, Ginny lived at the YWCA in Helena, Montana, when she was smitten by a handsome young man (Albert “Bert” Westby) in his Air Force uniform.  Their brief courtship led to marriage in 1951 and seven children from 1953 to 1963, with children born in Montana and the Texas towns of Amarillo and Port Arthur.

Always a devout Christian, Ginny lived her life with unwavering dedication to faith, family and friends.  Mornings always started with pre-dawn quiet time with Jesus, reading the Holy Bible, Christian periodicals and books by leading Christian authors.  Billy Graham was one of her favorites.  Bert and Ginny even hauled seven children in the station wagon to see Billy Graham when he spoke in Port Arthur.

Ginny is fondly remembered by her children for always being there, sometimes to support and sometimes to correct, yet always to the benefit of all involved.  She could be found in the kitchen most days, preparing home-cooked meals.  Big favorites were cabbage rolls and crepes.  Blessing of family and food was recited before every meal.  You may have felt the planet stop turning about 40 years ago, when she noticed her wedding ring missing from her finger while cooking.  The troops were mobilized.  Earth returned to normal rotation an hour later, when the ring was found in an eggshell in the garbage.  The crisis was not the value of the ring.  It was the purpose of the ring.

Long after leaving the farm in Montana, Ginny kept a garden, growing a wide variety of vegetables.  She could also be routinely found at the sewing machine, making clothes for the family or functional improvements to housewares, like durable (kid-proof) hassock covers and furniture armrest covers.  When something broke, she fixed it, because that’s what you do on a farm.  Duct tape served her well in life.  In her impossibly long days, she even managed to carve out time to volunteer with Meals on Wheels.

Ginny’s physical life was well-lived.  Her daily reading included “Mornings with Jesus.”  She often joyfully voiced her anticipation of trading her high-maintenance physical body for a new perfected eternal body.  Mission accomplished!  Her new daily routine is “Every Moment with Jesus”, unceasing in worship.

Ginny was preceded in physical death by Albert Westby – loving husband of 58 years; father, Jacob “Jake” Hahn; mother, Amelia Hahn; brother, Willard Hahn; sister, Carol Labor; son, Keith Westby; daughter, Diana Guillory; son-in-law, Robert “Bobby/Bob” Langham; and grandson, Pearly Guillory.

She is survived by three sons; Steven Westby of Richboro, of Pennsylvania, Gary Westby, of Shreveport, Louisiana, and Larry Westby of Dripping Springs; two daughters, Karen Langham of Port Arthur and Barbara Westby Seiser of Lumberton; fourteen grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren.

The family recognizes and is grateful for the compassionate loving care from the staff of HCA Hospital.

A gathering of Mrs. Westby’s family and friends will begin at 9:00 a.m., with her funeral service at 10:00 a.m., Tuesday, May 27, 2025, at Wesley Methodist Church, 3515 Helena Avenue, Nederland. Her interment will follow at Greenlawn Memorial Park, Groves, under the direction of Broussard’s, 505 North 12^th Street, Nederland.