Janice M. Osterman
Janice Mae Osterman
September 1st, 1926 – November 19th, 2025
*Author’s Note: The following excerpts in our “Life Stories” are from the Celebration of Life service for Janice Mae Osterman for you to read, reflect, and pay your respects privately. It was a lovely honor to learn about Janice and to serve her family. She will be dearly missed by many.
~~~
As we reflect on Janice’s 99 years, it may feel like it all went by far too quickly. While no length of time with our loved ones will ever seem long enough, know that it was an absolute blessing to have had Janice present on this earth for almost a century. Her time here and her time spent with each of you was a precious gift. When your world is feeling a little too empty, may you fill it with gratitude that your time here overlapped with Janice’s and that you were blessed to know her.
I’d like to share with you this poem, and I think it is just so beautiful. It’s all about perspective. While we are letting go, others are welcoming her home.
I am standing upon the seashore. A ship, at my side, spreads her white sails to the moving breeze and starts for the blue ocean. She is an object of beauty and strength. I stand and watch her until, at length, she hangs like a speck of white cloud just where the sea and sky come to mingle with each other. Then, someone at my side says, “There, she is gone.” Gone where? Gone from my sight. That is all. She is just as large in mast, hull and spar as she was when she left my side. And, she is just as able to bear her load of living freight to her destined port. Her diminished size is in me— not in her. And, just at the moment when someone says, “There, she is gone,” there are other eyes watching her coming, and other voices ready to take up the glad shout, “Here she comes!” – GONE FROM MY SIGHT Attributed to Henry Van Dyke
And I think that is something to celebrate. Celebrate her life and beautiful journey into the great beyond. May you know in your heart that she is at peace, and she is home now in the loving embrace of our Lord in heaven. She is reunited with the many loved ones she had been missing including her parents, Arnold and Anna, her husband, Bill, her good friend, Geraldine, and the numerous cats and dogs that she lovingly invited into her home. She is surrounded by love.
~~~
Janice was born near Elkhorn, WI, almost a century ago, on September 1st, 1926. We cannot even fathom the things that she bore witness to over the last 99 years of advancements in technology, medicine, and communication. From horse and buggy to cars that drive themselves, from handwritten letters to text messages, and so much more. What an incredible span of time that she experienced!
She attended Bradford High School in Kenosha. She met Bill, a WWII Marine, and they were married after the war in 1947 while he worked at American Motors. They welcomed their dear son, Jack, into the world, and loved being parents. Janice and Bill enjoyed life together until his passing in 1993.
Janice was a board-certified beautician and was self-employed. Jack remembers mom being a beautiful singer of Lutheran hymns. Janice was very sociable and close-knit with her neighbors. She was the president of the local Welcome Wagon International and had a wonderful gift of making people feel acclimated and welcomed.
When she and Bill retired, they travelled around Florida and decided that Pompano Beach was the place for them. They moved to the beach where they immensely enjoyed the sunshine and the building of friendships over the years.
Janice adored being grandma to her sweet grandchildren. Jack and Lani both note that Janice lived such a very good life, and she will be deeply missed. There are so many stories to tell and memories to relive. Please share the memories, share the love today and in the days and years to come so that her legacy may endure.
~~~
Janice will be forever loved and missed by her dear son, Jack, daughter-in-law, Lani, and her grandkids, Jacqui and Erik.
The family would like to extend a gracious thank you to the wonderful people at Janice’s assisted living facility and at hospice for their compassionate and dedicated care.
~~~
Janice, may you rest in eternal peace knowing you are dearly loved.
My sincere condolences and love, Holly