Jean (Advena) Goode

Troy - Jean Advena Goode, a longtime Troy area resident, died July 7 after an illness. She was 88 and lived at Eddy Village Green in Cohoes.

Jean was the daughter of the late Albert Advena and Stella Young Advena. She was born Nov. 12, 1927, in Germantown, Pennsylvania, where she lived until enrolling at the University of Pennsylvania. Jean graduated from the University in 1948 with a degree in music.

At a young age, Jean discovered a keen musical talent. She was a classically trained concert pianist who performed in the Philadelphia area for years. Jean was a piano instructor and played the organ at several churches before playing at her longtime congregation, St. John’s Episcopal Church in Troy.

Jean was a collector of antiques and she had an antiques business for a number of years. She was president of Whitston Publishing Company, a publisher of scholarly books, in Troy.

Jean loved to entertain, was a great cook, and had a diverse group of creative and inclusive friends. She loved to read and the arts. A friend of Jean’s from Troy said after her passing that “Jean was delightful, wonderful, and intelligent and she enriched all of our lives.”

Jean married Stephen H. Goode on October 16, 1952. She has two daughters, Polly G. (Scott) Henjum and Elizabeth (Glenn) Waters and five grandchildren, Hannah and Jack Henjum and Heather, Justin, and Lee Waters.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in memory of Jean A. Goode to Amnesty International USA Headquarters 5 Penn Plaza, 16th floor, New York, NY 10001. 

A celebration of Jean’s life will be held Sunday, July 10, at the Country Club of Troy from 3 – 5 p.m. For more information, contact Polly Henjum at polly.henjum@gmail.com. 

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