Janice Elizabeth Haggerty's Obituary
Janice Elizabeth Haggerty passed away peacefully with her loving family by her side on Monday, March 20, 2017 following some recent health challenges. She was 82 years old.Janice was born on March 23, 1934 in Abington, Pennsylvania, the beautiful daughter of Frances E. (Aheren) and Albert E. KellerTo say Janice was a wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother, and housewife would easily put some of the usual titles and accomplishments to her life. She fulfilled each to the point that everyone in the family felt the love she put into every aspect of her life. Explaining other facets of her life is harder to do on paper. If you knew her, you experienced the same loving, caring soul that would take to heart your emotions; whether happy, sad, worried, thoughtful in all ways. Pick a moment in your life; if it was negative, she would do anything she could to ease your pain. And when you shared a positive life’s experience, she was joyous and celebrated the moment no matter how big or small. She made you feel better and deserving of the good thing that had happened.She took a trait from her father, that of a quiet, reserved person. With her career Air Force husband of 50 years, you could easily think that she just followed on the uniform coattails of this amazing man. She followed him to the ends of the world in his career. Leaving her home state of Pennsylvania, she started her military journey at bases in California, Colorado, Mississippi, and South Carolina. Then there were also the overseas assignments, including Australia in the early 1960’s, the Phillipines as the 60’s wound down and Thailand in the early 1970’s, which included the end of the Vietnam Conflict. Janice was Joe’s soulmate and a couragious soul, not the diminutive, quiet follower. With two boys in tow, ages 3 and 6, she was actually pregnant with her third child. Her mother had just recently passed away from cancer when she moved halfway around world to the middle of the outback of Australia. She gave birth to her first and only daughter, also named Janice, in Alice Springs, Australia. If you’ve taken notice of the range of dates, most of this time was during the Vietnam war. Her husband was in and out of very dangerous, war torn assignments, but as children living in that home, she never showed us a moment of stress or anxiety. It was just normal for Dad to travel and be gone for weeks at a time, on assignment. It was also normal that as Dad advanced in his career, we were told many times that Mom was always one grade or rank ahead of him. Dad would say…if he became a Captain…she was a Major…a light way to say that Mom was really in charge and he respected and loved her. In fact, she attained the final rank of Colonel, something that neither dad or son, Joe, attained in their military careers!This October 3rd would mark 64 years of this incredible journey she started with “I Do” to a young airman. She continued to share that love with everyone she met and most of all her family. . . she unconditionally loved her husband, her three children, 7 grandchildren, and 5 great grandchildren. She was the glue that made the family complete and held all the parts together with her strength and love.A Memorial Service for Janice will be celebrated by Father Oliver Toner at 12:00 Noon on Thursday, March 23, 2017 inside the chapel at Fort Myers Memorial Gardens Funeral Home, 1589 Colonial Boulevard, Fort Myers, Florida 33907, (239) 936-0555. Guests will be received for an hour preceding this ceremony beginning at 11:00 AM also at the funeral home chapel. Immediately following the conclusion of these ceremonies, friends and guests will recess to adjacent Memorial Gardens Cemetery where Janice will be laid to rest alongside her beloved husband Joseph inside the mausoleum located at the Garden of Peace.To share a story, leave a tribute or to offer condolences to the family at this difficult time please visit Janice’s memorial webpage at www.fortmyersmemorial.com and sign her guestbook.
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