Jean (Kollat) Gastel, age 97 passed away November 17,2020 at her Hubbard Hill residence, in Elkhart, Indiana. Jean was born, October 22, 1923 in East Chicago, Indiana, the daughter of Joseph and Julia Michna who preceded her in death. Jean's older sister, Helen Sonnier of Houston Texas, also preceded her in death at the age of 95. Her brother Raymond Michna also preceded her in death at the age of 7. She graduated from Roosevelt High School in East Chicago in 1941. Her first job was in a malt shop and the owner gave her a nick name of jitter, because as she waited on tables she always danced to the music. In 1942, Jean married Albert (Ab) David Kollat, and they moved to Elkhart. He preceded her in death in 1973. Surviving are Jean's two children, Roger J. Kollat (and wife Diane) of Elkhart, In. and Kathleen Jean (Kollat) Honaker (and husband Martin) of Versailles, KY. Jean's three nieces are Bonnie Guestow of Deerfield, Texas, Sally Myhre of Osolo, Norway and Mary Jacobson of Palm Springs, California. Her two nephews were David T. Kollat, of Columbus, Ohio and Ned W. Cadwell of Houston, TX. In 1973, Jean married John W. Gastel, they resided in Elkhart, IN. and Monticello, IN. John retired from NIPSCO and preceded her in death in 2004. Jean had four stepchildren. Nancy (Gastel) Coen (with husband Robert) of Divide, CO., Gayle (Gastel) Corry (with husband James) of Fort Wayne, IN., John B. Gastel of Everett WA., and Kurt Gastel (with wife Becky) of Brownsburg, IN. Along with 11 Grandchildren, Jean leaves an amazing legacy of 26 Great Grandchildren and 7 Great-Great Grandchildren. Jean was a fabulous homemaker and always provided a fun place to visit for her family and friends. She really enjoyed preparing great meals for her children and family her entire life. She was a very caring conversationalist and loved listening to her family & friends' thoughts and life events. Jean was a very warm and true lady who was dearly loved. She enjoyed clothes and took pride in her daily appearance and dress. The staff at Hubbard Hill even called her their stylish queen. She was a very accomplished bridge player, playing past the age of 66. Her favorite sport teams were Notre Dame football and women's basketball. She loved to watch the Kentucky Derby! Jean enjoyed playing golf and bowling. She even taught and played both with some of her grandchildren. She was an avid reader, mostly biographies, usually with 3 books going at a time, in addition to her two daily newspapers, and various periodicals. Jean was proud that she was a breast cancer survivor for over 30 years! A private service will be for family members only. In lieu of flowers, Jean requested donations be made to Breast Cancer Research or Hubbard Hill.