Portia Ann Downs Taft
TAFT, DOWNS, JARRARD, GARRISON
Posted By: Sarah Fletcher (email)
Date: 2/6/2022 at 07:36:11
Portia Ann Downs Taft, June 20, 1927-January 21, 2022
Portia Taft died peacefully in her sleep at Crestview Specialty Care Center in West Branch, Iowa, on January 21, 2022.
Portia--AKA Popo--was born in Kobe, Japan on June 20, 1927, to the Reverend Darley and Lucille Jarrard Downs. Her father Darley was a United Church of Christ minister, and both of her parents were missionaries in Tokyo for over forty years. Portia lived with her family in Tokyo until the spring of 1941 when the mission board sent her, her mother, and her brothers Jerry and Ray to the States, while her father Darley was sent to the Philippines. Darley was interned in a Japanese prison camp in 1942 when the Philippines fell to the Japanese. He was freed in 1945. Portia desperately missed her beloved father during those formative years.
Portia attended Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland for a year, but found her true calling at the Evanston Hospital School of Nursing, in Evanston Illinois. Portia became a registered nurse in 1950, which began her long career in nursing. She worked in several hospital newborn nurseries, as well as pediatric, orthopedic, and cardiology practices.
It was in Evanston where she met her future husband, John A. Taft, Jr.—Jack. Jack became a hospital administrator after attending Northwestern University and Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. They were married in 1953, and his career brought them to St. Charles, Illinois, where Jack was the president and CEO of Delnor Hospital for over thirty years. Upon his retirement from Delnor, Portia and Jack spent several more years at new hospitals—one in Morganton, North Carolina, and the other in Washington, Indiana. Portia and Jack retired to Madison, Wisconsin and later moved to Iowa City, Iowa when Jack’s health declined, to be near family.
Portia was born to be a mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. She was never happier than being around babies. Portia and Jack had four children; Sarah, Peter, Andrew, and Mary. When grandchildren arrived, Portia became Popo and was in her element when visiting her 12 granddaughters. Her one great grandson and four great granddaughters brought her joy in her final years.
Portia had a deep love of animals and her home had a menagerie of pets when her kids were young, from dogs and cats, to geese and ducks—including her favorite Pekin duck Clancy. She nursed many an animal back to health, including field mice and critters of all kind. She had an exceptional green thumb; her house was always filled with an array of lovely plants. She loved to sing along with Ella Fitzgerald and always told the story of how Dizzy Gillespie once winked at her. She and Jack were excellent dancers and their homes were always filled with an eclectic mix of music. Portia had a wicked sense of humor and a *colorful* vocabulary and people loved being around her fun, lively, and sometimes irreverent personality. Portia and Jack always welcomed their children’s friends into their home, providing some an oasis of non-judgement and a place to stay as long as needed.
Portia was preceded in death by her parents Darley and Lucille; her brother Ray Farnum Downs, and her husband Jack. She is survived by her older brother Allison Jarrard—A.J., Jerry—and her four children, Sarah Taft(John), Peter Taft(Mary), Andrew Taft(Elizabeth), and Mary Garrison(Rick); her 12 granddaughters, including Sarah’s daughters Pieta, Constie, and Zoe, Peter’s daughters Nora and Sophie, Andrew’s daughters Helena and Anna, and Mary’s daughters Chloe, Hallie, Lily, Mattie, and Molly; her five great grandchildren, Pieta’s son Memphis, Constie’s daughter Mabel, Zoe’s daughter Ruth, and Chloe’s daughters Pearl and Hazel.
In true Popo fashion, Portia’s last word to family members was, “sayonara”, an homage to her beloved Japan, and a last flash of her quick wit. She will be missed.
Services will be held at a later date in Iowa City at Lensing Funeral Home with details announced when decided. The family sincerely and gratefully thank the amazing and loving staff at Crestview, who took such wonderful care of our Popo.
Lensing Funeral & Cremation Service
Johnson Obituaries maintained by Cindy Booth Maher.
WebBBS 4.33 Genealogy Modification Package by WebJourneymen