Jamie Lynn McHugh Lewis was born on March 16, 1971, in Bellevue, Wash., to Sharyl Harbertson McHugh and Michael George McHugh. She passed away on May 16, 2023, in Pinedale, Wyo.
Jamie was lucky to be born with two built-in best friends, her older sisters Michelle and Kelley. The three sisters had many adventures that became favorite family stories. When Jamie was 13, she welcomed her brother, Patrick, whom she immediately adored. He was often included as “one of the guys” in her friend group even as a baby and a toddler.
Once, when sledding as a young girl, Jamie’s brother-in-law asked her if she was ready at the top of a very steep hill. She replied confidently, “I was born ready!” which sums up a lot about how she lived. She was full of life and seemed born ready to make every experience a bit more fun, brighter, and exciting than it would have been without her. Everything became extra funny with Jamie around. Her ability to see the humor in everything often had you laughing until you cried together. She was the queen of inside jokes and made individual connections with people through her sense of humor.
When she was young, her family moved to Soda Springs, Idaho, where she attended school from kindergarten until graduating from Soda Springs High School in 1989. She was gregarious and kind and had a large group of close friends that felt like family, whom she stayed in touch with well into adulthood.
Adult life found her living in many places, including multiple towns in Idaho, Hawaii, Utah and Wyoming. Jamie found something to love in every new place, seeking out new experiences, and seeing the unique qualities each area had to offer. She found friendship and community everywhere she lived.
In June 1997, she married Chad McCuiston. They had two children together, Brok Danniel, born in 1998, and Madynn Jentrie, born in 2005. Her children were the absolute best part of her life. She was immeasurably proud of them and loved them fiercely and with every fiber of her being.
In 2011, Jamie found her true love, Digger Lewis. They were married in 2014 and began their loving journey together. From this union, she gained three bonus kids, Austin, Kaela and Makinzie, whom she loved as her own. Jamie was the love of Digger’s life and they had a happy and fulfilling relationship. They made their home in Pinedale. She loved their life together, appreciating the beauty of the land that surrounded them and becoming a true Wyoming Cowboys fan.
Jamie had the capacity to love others in a vast and expansive way. She connected with people instantly and made them feel seen and safe in her presence. She was genuinely excited when she got to see the people she loved — she could make you feel like you were the most important person in the world to her. That’s because when you were talking to her, at that moment, you were the most important person in the world to her. She was present and listened closely because she cared deeply about what you had to say. She enthusiastically celebrated and supported the big and small accomplishments and milestones in the lives of people around her. She made it a point to let you know that she was proud of you in those moments. Jamie greeted people with a giant smile that made her big blue eyes sparkle and a tight and loving hug as soon as she saw you, followed by another big hug at the end of your time together. It was important to her that you knew how happy she was to see you and talk with you, and that you never left without her telling you how much she loved you.
Jamie loved her family, friends, music and getting dressed up. She had a continuously evolving style and was known for having beautiful hair, makeup and fashionable clothing during each era. She loved animals and always had cats or dogs, but she especially loved her dogs and treated them like people. They received constant cuddles, nightly massages and heating pads in their beds. She loved spoiling them and they loved her just as much as she loved them.
Jamie lived in a big way and loved hard. Her absence leaves a giant open space in the lives of the people she leaves behind.
She is preceded in death by her maternal and paternal grandparents, her father Michael, and her sister Kelley. Jamie and Kelley had a special bond and relationship; there is no doubt that the Twisted Sisters are reunited and currently raising some hell up in heaven.
Jamie is survived by her husband Digger, her children Brok and Madynn, and stepchildren Austin (Bregan), Kaela (Trever) and Makinzie, her mother Sharyl, sister Michelle (Jon) and brother Patrick (Brittany), nieces and nephews, Lyndsey, Kevin, Erin, Kory, Tylin, Jaxson, Morgan, Haiden, Karlyn, and Liam, and great-nieces and great-nephews, Sullivan, Talulah, Kellen and Zoey. She loved being “Mimi” to Austin’s son Odin and Kaela’s son Jayse.
A Celebration of Life will take place at a later date.
