Jeanette McCray was born March 30, 1955, to the late Ulysees McCray and Ethell Roberts Burkes in Albany, Georgia. She was raised by her mother and father, the late Willie Burkes, in a home filled with love and joy. She attended the Dougherty County Schools and graduated from Monroe High School, Class of 1973.

Her greatest joy was her family. As a devoted homemaker and a mother of five children, she spent her life raising her children, supporting her loved ones, and sharing the Love of God with warmth and kindness.

At an early age, she joined Emmauel Seventh-Day Adventist Church and gave her life to Christ. Professing her continued love for Christ, she joined the Holiness Church. Like her mother, she was most passionate about her prayer life and her prayer time. She enjoyed a deeply personal relationship with God and was not shy about sharing the “Good News” of the Gospel. She will be remembered for always instructing her family and friends to pray - she was a prayer warrior! In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her aunts Bernice Holmes, Elizabeth Williams, Barbara Ann Rockwell, Veronis Lovette, Betty Jean Andrews, and Verdell L. Harris. She was also preceded in death by her uncles Mozell Roberts, Jr., Taylor Roberts, and Rodolphus Hodges, Jr.

Jeanette departed this life Tuesday, June 9, 2026, surrounded by her children, grandchildren, and her sister.

She leaves to cherish fond memories her five children: Crawford Wooden, Jr., Tominique Wooden, Ysakia Wooden, Ontario Wooden (Kimberly), and Damarcus Wooden; twelve grandchildren and four great grandchildren. One sister: Rosemary Burkes Collier (Baron). One aunt: Juanita Sanders. Three uncles: Willie J. Roberts (Karen), Willie B. Roberts (Donna), Donald Hodges (Susan); nieces: Nakia Collier (Courtney) and India Collier, cousins, other relatives and friends. She shared a loving and devoted partnership with a special friend, John Thomas.