Age 82 Born, raised and lived in Inver Grove Heights.

Died February 16, 2019 from Alzheimer’s Disease. Preceded in death by husband, Herb. Survived by daughters, Heidi (Jeff Roan) and Jennifer (Jo Young); grandsons, Tristan and Eamon; sister, Doris Huebscher; brother, Wes Wille; many nieces and nephews; special friends Pat Niska and Mike LaForte, and feline friend, Katie. Jan was a 1960 graduate of the University of Minnesota, earning a BA in Sociology. She was very proud of her work at Hastings State Hospital where she cared for children with intellectual and developmental disabilities. She also worked at correctional facilities for youths in the 60s, where she randomly reconnected with her former high school classmate Herb. They married in 1964 and settled in IGH shortly thereafter.

Starting in the mid-60s, Jan became a full-time mother and homemaker. During her time as a stay-at-home parent she was a tireless advocate for her daughters’ educations, a master crossword puzzler, an avid gardener, a devoted pet owner and an uninspired cook (which she would have admitted to you herself). She volunteered at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, of which she was a founding member, in many different capacities over the years: as part of the cleaning team, a Mobile Meals organizer, caller and deliverer, the food shelf organizer and distributor, funeral lunch donation caller and, finally, the first friendly face you’d encounter when you came to donate blood through the Red Cross at the church. She was happiest doing useful work of some kind. In more recent years Jan delighted in spending time with her grandsons, exercising grandparents’ prerogative when it came to candy, cookies and especially ice cream. She organized the annual Wille family reunion every August. She continued to tackle the daily crossword, puzzling up until one week before her death, and enjoyed visiting with friends and caring for her cat. Jan was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s after two serious seizures in the spring of 2017. It saddened everyone to watch her decline mentally. She was admitted to Regions Hospital on February 8th with pain, which was discovered to be a compression fracture in her spine. She went downhill unexpectedly quickly after returning home after her hospital stay, and passed between 9 and 10 PM on February 16th, after friends and family members had visited. A Memorial Service will be held on Friday, March 8 at 11:00 AM at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, 7500 Cahill Ave, Inver Grove Heights. Friends may call starting at 9:00. Light lunch and some Jan-inspired fun to follow.  We would like to incorporate your stories into the service and invite you to submit your fondest memories of Jan – whether funny, sweet, profound or everyday – either in writing on the day of the service before the service starts, or by e-mail to memoriesofjan@gmail.com anytime between now and Thursday, March 7. In lieu of flowers, please honor Jan by donating to the Nature Conservancy, which she and Herb supported for over 30 years. www.nature.org. Special thanks to the staff of The Willows of Ramsey Hill and Health Partners hospice for their care and support.