Jean Weber McDonell, a former Pacific Palisades businesswoman, died peacefully of natural causes in the company of family and caregivers at her home on September 5. She was 92. Born on September 6, 1913 in Chicago, Jean moved with her family to Los Angeles in 1919. Through her married years, she was active in many social and political causes, her church and community, and especially with the monks at St. Andrews Abbey in Valyermo, California, where she was an Oblate of the Benedictine order. After raising her children, she bought and successfully ran The Weathervane clothing store in Pacific Palisades and later established Weathervane for Men on Montana Avenue in Santa Monica. She sold her businesses and retired at the age of 75. In her retirement, she did volunteer work at the UCLA Medical Center while continuing her support for St. Andrews Abbey and sustaining friends and family. Her greatest love and passion was the garden at her home in Brentwood. Jean was a woman of remarkable talents and abounding energy, gifted with keen intelligence, creativity and love for humanity. She was an incredible role model for her children and all those lives she touched. She was pre-deceased by her husband, Howard, and her brother, Robert Weber, M.D. She is survived by her siblings, Christina (Ruth) Weber and Richard Weber; children Howard, Jan, Jill, Robert and Christina; eight grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. Jean was buried during a private service at St. Andrews Abbey on September 18. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to St. Andrews Abbey, P.O. Box 40, Valyermo, CA 93563-0040.
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