98-Year-Old Great-Grandmother Has a Special Connection to Her Great-Granddaughter
For Amanda Starace and her sister, Brianna Pecora, their grandmother, Jeanne, wasn’t just the matriarch. She was the steady presence, the warm embrace, the voice of wisdom woven into their childhood. Growing up with a single mom, Jeanne was always there—a second heartbeat in their home, an anchor when life felt unsteady.
Her Baby Felt Like a Gift
So when Amanda found out she was pregnant after a difficult journey, she knew, deep in her soul, that this child would carry more than just her love. She would carry a name.
“My due date was October 8,” Amanda remembers, “which is also my birthday. It’s a meaningful date for our family because my mom had a baby before me, a little boy named Joseph. He was born in August but had a genetic mutation that prevented him from digesting food, so he passed away on October 8, 1990. Then, I was born on October 8, 1991."
When Amanda found out she was expecting, it felt like a sign, a gift from heaven above.
“When I found out I was pregnant, it felt like a gift—like maybe Joseph had sent us this baby,” she says. “So we told Grandma, if it’s a boy, we’ll name him Joseph. And if it’s a girl, we’d name her after her.”
Jeanne Wept When She Heard What Her Great-Granddaughter’s Name Was
And oh, how Jeanne wept.
At 98 years old, Jeanne had lived long enough to see the world change in ways she never imagined. But time stood still on the day she met her great-granddaughter, Lilly Jeanne.
The moment Amanda was discharged from the hospital, she called her mother. "You need to bring Grandma here right now. We never know how much time she has left," she said.
And so Jeanne came.
The Name Was Chosen with Intention
Her hands, weathered with decades of love and loss, reached out to touch the baby’s tiny fingers. Her voice caught in her throat. And when she learned the child’s name—her name—was being carried forward, her eyes filled with the kind of tears that only come from a life well-lived and a love well-given.
“My grandma’s name was originally spelled ‘Jean,’” Amanda explains. “But when she was filling out paperwork to serve in World War II, she thought it looked too plain. So she changed it to ‘Jeanne.’”
A name chosen with intention. A name carried forward with love.
Amanda’s sister, Brianna, recorded the moment Jeanne met Lilly Jeanne for the first time—a sacred, fleeting exchange between past and future.
Her Video Went Viral
Later, as their grandmother faced a health scare, Brianna scrolled through her camera roll and found the video again. Something in her heart nudged her to share it. So she did.
Within days, the video went viral, garnering nearly 2 million views. People poured into the comments, sharing their own stories, their own grandmothers, their own heartstrings pulled tight by the weight of nostalgia and the weight of being named after a loved one.
“I’ve been surprised by how many people have the name Jean,” Amanda said with laughter. “Thousands of comments saying, ‘That’s my middle name,’ or ‘My grandma was Jean, too.’ It reminded me how much names hold—how much history they carry.”
Now 100 years old, Jeanne still holds her great-granddaughter close, even when miles separate them.
They Try to Visit As Often As They Can
“I try to visit as often as I can—once or twice a month—but Lilly loves FaceTiming her,” Amanda says. “She calls her ‘Grandma Jean’ and says, ‘I’m Lilly Jean, just like you.’”
And the two of them? They share peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. They giggle over FaceTime. They wrap each other in a love that defies time, a love that says: I see you. I remember you. You are part of me, and I am part of you.
For Amanda, watching her daughter and grandmother together is like watching the past fold into the future. The woman who once cared for her now watches her care for her own child, and the hands that once held her steady now hold her daughter.
And in that sacred, breathtaking way—love lingers. Love remains. Love is carried on.
And so is Jeanne’s name.
Psalm 103:17: "But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children."
WATCH: 98-Year-Old Great-Grandmother Has a Special Connection to Her Great-Granddaughter
@morefunwithoutit Grandma Jean 🤝 Lily Jean🥺#fyp #heartwarming #grandmasoftiktok #family #sober ♬ original sound - bro
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Photo Credit: ©TikTok/morefunwithoutit
Originally published February 21, 2025.
