Tammy Jean Wink

Tammy J. Wink passed away at her home on Saturday, March 7, 2026 due to complications from a long battle with alcoholism. There will be private family services. The Nicklas D. Jensen Funeral Home of Moville is in charge of the arrangements.

What a ride.

Tammy’s claim to fame was her talent with horses. She won lots of buckles and saddles over the years! I have so many fond memories of that time in our lives. But, as the years went on, we saw her less and less. She LOVED watching Alex and Alissa grow and thrive. Without kids of her own, our kids were her kids too. She was so proud of them. And our grandkids have filled her with smiles and happiness since they were born. Alcohol began to isolate her. She stayed home from rodeos to drink. She missed ballgames to drink. She missed days, weeks, months and years of daily life to drink. Multiple treatments, hospitalizations, illnesses, lies, falls, accidents, jail and prison-stays became her life. Then the shame and regret of it all caused her to isolate even more. Soon only a few people were left in her life. Everyone else either gave up on her, judged her choices or were too hurt by her to forgive, and stopped remembering her. This is all too typical of people with addiction.

The alcoholic is so embarrassed or hurt by their actions done while drunk, that they drink to forget. They no longer get invited to things. They feel judged and watched, so they drink. They lose friends, coworkers, and worse, family. They feel so alone. Tammy would have never chosen this path for her life. No one would. But this became her life. She was the toughest person I’ve ever witnessed. The things she endured throughout her addiction were things I could NEVER lived through. Not only the physical mountains she had to climb, but the mental valleys she had to endure. She missed Mom so much. And Mom’s last words to us were, “Don’t forget about Tammy.” Dad and I tried our best to help Tam. Families of addicts have quite a bumpy ride, too. We are the few people that they can call for help. We check in on you and pray endlessly for you. We always remember you. But we do it alone. We don’t talk about it, and most people don’t ask.

Tammy is now with Mom. Mom will be so happy to see her and hold her. The promise of Heaven is what gets Dad and I through these tough times. We’ve learned so much from Mom’s illness and Tammy’s addiction. We’ve learned to put others before ourselves. We’ve learned not to judge. We’ve learned “tough love” is SO tough. We know that our faith is what got us through this. God was there with us. So, now we have to learn to live without Tammy. We are elated her pain and suffering are gone! We are forever grateful for the people that tried to help Tammy. She appreciated you so much. You can’t imagine how much that meant to us and to Tammy. We are so very thankful for Tammy and her life. She loved deeply. She lived simply. She had great faith in God and His promises. Her faith never weakened, it only got stronger.

Please remember Tammy…for the good times you remember, for her love of animals, and for her struggles with addiction. Please forgive her words or actions that may have hurt you. Believe me, she suffered knowing she hurt others. In remembering her, please try to be a little more understanding and a little more forgiving. We all have failures and addictions, don’t we? Most not as visible as alcoholism. We all need love, care and understanding. Even when we may not deserve it. But that’s when we need it the most.

I find comfort in the verse of a song:

“Bring all your failures.

Bring your addictions.

Come lay them down at the foot of the cross.

Jesus is waiting there, with open arms!”

We’ll miss you Tammy! We’ve learned so much from you. We love you and will ALWAYS remember you!

Thanks for the ride.

Dad and Nancy