Janet Rosemary Rausch 1933-2009
TWAMLEY, GABRIEL, RAUSCH, RODRIGUEZ, WILLIAMS, ANDERA
Posted By: Mary Durr (email)
Date: 4/29/2009 at 08:24:22
Janet Rosemary Rausch
Janet R. Rausch, age 75, of Lansing and St. Petersburg, FL, and formerly of Decorah, died Sunday, January 18, 2009 at Tampa General Hospital in Tampa, FL following a brief illness. A Memorial Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, April 8 at St. Benedict Catholic Church in Decorah, with Rev. Phillip Gibbs officiating. Inurnment will be in the church cemetery in Decorah. Honorary bearers will be Mark Andera, Mike Andera, Larry Frank, Dennis Moenck, Dick Saul and Eugene Swella, Jr.
Visitation is after 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, April 8 at the church, one hour before services. Fjelstul Funeral Home of Decorah is in charge of arrangements.
Janet Rosemary Rausch was born May 4, 1933, in Waucoma, the daughter of Edward and Helen (Twamley) Gabriel, and was baptized October 26, 1933. She graduated from Waucoma High School May 14, 1952, where she had lettered on the varsity team in basketball.
May 23, 1952 Jan met her future husband, Joseph Rausch, at a dance in Spillville, and they were married September 15, 1955 at St. John's Catholic Church in Fort Atkinson. After their marriage they lived in Cedar Rapids, where she worked for Northwestern Bell Telephone Co. They later moved to Fort Atkinson and finally settled in Decorah, where they raised their three children: Roger, Gary and Deborah. They became members of St. Benedict Catholic Church and their children attended St. Benedict's School.
Jan had worked at various part-time jobs, as a waitress at Ruby's and Nob Hill, and as a sales clerk at Ben Franklin. She was a self-taught dog groomer and began by grooming friends' dogs. She developed a thriving business - the first dog groomer in Decorah. For several years she worked at the Vet Clinic on Montgomery Street as a dog groomer two days a week and also as a veterinary assistant.
Jan was a full-time housewife and mother. As her children were growing up the family enjoyed camping, fishing, canoeing, mushroom hunting and sitting around the campfire. She enjoyed garage sales with neighborhood friends and later flea markets in Florida.
Jan and Joe were active members of Silvercrest Golf and Country Club and the Elks Club. Following their retirements they sold their house in Decorah and bought a place in Lansing. They became "snowbirds" and spent two winters in Lake Wales, FL.
They returned to Iowa in the spring of 1993 and then Joe died after a brief illness. Jan continued to be a "snowbird" and spent the last fifteen and a half years between Lansing and St. Petersburg, FL. She was a "tough bird", driving by herself back and forth between Iowa and Florida. While making these trips she would always stop and visit family. Her hobbies included fishing, shuffleboard, playing cards and hunting for sea shells. She fell in love with pelicans and over the years acquired an impressive display of figurines. Her fuzzy, favorite pelican, "Scoop", rode everywhere with her in her van.
Jan is survived by her three children, Roger (Gwynneth) Rausch of St. Louis, M), Gary (Sheryl) Rausch of Decorah, and Deborah (Joe) Rodriguez of Waterloo; her granddaughter, Hannah Rodriguez of Waterloo; her sister, Virginia (Hershel) Williams of Moberly, MO; and her sister-in-law, Patty (Merlin) Andera of Waterloo. She was preceded in death by her husband, Joe, June 5, 1993; her parents, Edward and Helen Gabriel; and by her daughter-in-law, Deb Lien Rausch, in 1993.
The Waukon Standard, April 8, 2009
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