Jenifer and Micah Wells celebrate a wedding anniversary in Seaside, Ore. The Wells were married for about 20 years. 

Mike Manning and Micah Wells sit together at Wells' daughter's wedding celebration. 

Mike Manning and Micah Wells walk Megan Ellis, Wells' daughter, down the aisle at her wedding. 

Jenifer and Micah Wells celebrate a wedding anniversary in Seaside, Ore. The Wells were married for about 20 years. 

Mike Manning and Micah Wells sit together at Wells' daughter's wedding celebration. 

The first thing Jenifer Wells noticed about Micah was his smile.

Volunteering at a church in the Seattle area, he greeted churchgoers in the parking lot with a wave, his face beaming.

“He had the biggest smile, and that’s what drew me to him,” Jenifer said. “I said, ‘Lord, if you can just introduce me to that guy someday, I would like to know where that smile is coming from.’”

Micah Wells and his mother, Sarah Wells, were two of the community members remembered at the Juneteenth concert memorial at The Seasons Performance Hall on Sunday in Yakima. The mother and son died a week apart in August 2021.

To honor the Wellses’ memory, Jenifer shared memories of her late husband and mother-in-law. Their faith, love and joy spread light to the family all through their lives and throughout 20 years of marriage.

Jenifer said she and Micah understood each other well from their first date. He asked her out a year after they met, inviting her to dinner at his home. Jenifer said he greeted her with open arms, a kiss and a “Welcome home.”

They shared stories in candlelight, soft jazz playing in the background, the food on their plates — Micah’s special fried chicken with steamed broccoli and macaroni and cheese — growing cold as they talked.

Micah told her about growing up on the East Coast. His mother, Sarah, lived in New York City and his father lived in New Jersey. He spent some time with each of them.

In his early adult life, Micah lost two children six years apart to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.

“That took him on a road of destruction,” Jenifer said.

He became alcohol and drug addicted and moved to Seattle, where he ended up homeless before entering a transitional housing program and becoming sober.

“I couldn’t believe this man, this man that I’ve been seeing at church for the last year, who smiles all the time and is happy and joyful and lights Jesus within, you know, the fact that he went through what he did,” Jenifer said.

Their connection over dinner was immediate and comfortable, and Micah asked Jenifer to marry him weeks later.

Jenifer and Micah found family in one another’s families.

Micah had moved his mother, Sarah, to downtown Seattle to be nearer to him, and she was part of the relationship from the start.

“I realized I wasn’t just meeting him, but I was meeting his mom, and his mom had to like me,” Jenifer said.

She described Mother Wells as the matriarch of the family and a wonderful woman of God.

“When you met her, you understood where (Micah’s) smile came from because she glowed. She radiated love and joy and peace, and she loved everyone.”

Micah also welcomed and accepted Jenifer’s family, including her daughter, Megan.

Mike Manning and Micah Wells walk Megan Ellis, Wells' daughter, down the aisle at her wedding. 

“He raised her as though that was his child,” Jenifer said.

Micah and Jenifer moved to Yakima in 2004, renting a place at first before buying a home in West Valley.

“We had prayed and prayed and prayed that God would give us a home because neither one of us had ever owned a home,” Jenifer said.

They lived in a modular home on 10 acres of land, raising peacocks, chickens, dogs and cats. The home was the site of many family traditions and memories, including J’Lyn’s Bistro, a dinner and entertainment experience first dreamed up by the couple for Christmas dinner 2006.

The two crafted a menu, decorated their home and hung a sign outside the door showing the name of their new restaurant. Micah greeted his mother and Jenifer’s parents at the door, seating them at the table while Jenifer made final preparations in the kitchen.

“The first time was the funniest because I heard his mom giggling, saying, ‘What?’” she said.

Micah and Jenifer would bring out the plates of food, lowering them to the table in sync as they’d seen once in a restaurant in Seattle so the meal was revealed all at once to the guests.

The tradition continued and grew each year, with new people attending the dinner and Jenifer acquiring a chef’s hat.

“We really enjoyed doing that for our family,” she said.

Jenifer said Micah cared so much for people. He did all he could to take care of his family, and he was also dedicated to his community.

He worked at Yakima’s Union Gospel Mission for 15 years as the warehouse manager and warehouse director and later drove city buses for Yakima Transit. He loved people, and he often shared his story when he met someone with a similar background of homelessness and addiction, Jenifer said.

“He was very direct, but at the same time very compassionate and empathetic towards why they were there,” she said. “He understood it. He understood why you could be homeless. He had a heart for that, but he also had a much bigger desire to get them on their feet.”

Micah died of cholangiocarcinoma, an aggressive form of cancer, on Aug. 22, 2021, about five months after his diagnosis. During that time, he had been in and out of treatment in Yakima and Seattle. He was 63 years old.

His memorial service was held at a church in Yakima on Aug. 28, 2021, and Jenifer and Sarah sat side by side. Jenifer remembered Sarah helping her through the service — “It’s Micah. Let’s be joyful,” she remembered her saying. “We’re going to help each other through this.”

Later that evening, Sarah told the family her heart wasn’t feeling right. Her son took her to the emergency room, where her medical tests came back normal. But as night turned to early morning, she died unexpectedly.

Sarah’s doctor told Jenifer she had died of broken heart syndrome. She was 91 years old.

“I lost my whole family in a week,” Jenifer said.

After Micah’s death, Jenifer sold their West Valley home and moved to a more central spot in Yakima.

At first, she was hesitant to hang photos to remind her of her husband, thinking it might get her down.

“In the last few months, I’ve placed those things back up,” she said Sunday. “I have this wonderful painting of him, pictures he had taken and put into frames, certain things like that I’ve placed up, memorabilia of his.”

By seeing his smile, thinking of him and sharing his story, she keeps his memory alive.

“He was always about helping people and not holding that in,” Jenifer said. “Together we lived a really beautiful and really happy life.”

Contact Kate Smith at katesmith@yakimaherald.com.

Sweet notes of blues and jazz filled the air as vocalist Josephine Howell performed a rendition of “I Believe I Can Fly” at The Seasons Perfor…

Your comment has been submitted.

There was a problem reporting this.

Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.

Sign up to receive news and updates from this site directly to your desktop.

Click on the bell icon to manage your notifications at any time.

Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device.