Janice F. Garnick died peacefully in Pleasanton, California on December 16, 2025. She was lovingly attended in her last days by her four children. Janice was a cherished mother, grand and great grandmother, cousin, and friend, and her presence will be deeply missed.
Janice was born in Oakland, California in 1928 and was an East Bay Area resident all of her life. She spent her childhood in Piedmont, California, living in the home built by her parents on Estates Drive, and attended Piedmont High School. She graduated from Stanford University in 1950 with a degree in Education. There, she met fellow Stanford student Howard Garnick who held a part time job bussing tables in her all girl dormitory, and they were married in June, 1950.
Janice and Howard lived for a time in Oakland, but moved to San Leandro, California in 1958 where they lived in their lovely brick home on Arbor Drive for the next 30+ years. There, Janice managed the fun filled childhood of her four children - Marilyn, Steven, Anne and Larry. She was a cub scout den mother, a significant volunteer in her children’s schools, and a leader in her church. She was an instigator in her children’s lives, finding all sorts of activities for them to engage in, attend, and take lessons in. She was an excellent tennis player and enjoyed years of team play with many friends. She was an avid bridge player, a great skier, a golf enthusiast, and a lover of the outdoors, camping and hiking. She was a jokester and loved to play tricks on friends and family, always with a twinkle in her eye. She was musical and enjoyed singing and performing. In short, Janice was the facilitator of interesting and joyous activities not only for her children but also for friends and extended family, and she was greatly loved and admired by them for her sense of humor, athleticism, intelligence, enthusiasm, leadership, kindness, and all around charisma.
She also loved to travel; Janice and Howard ventured together to every continent and most every country you can imagine. They were adventurous, journeying to Papua New Guinea to see the “Sing Sing” many years ago, to China just after it opened to western travelers in 1979, to the U.S.S.R. in the 1960’s, to Antarctica in 1995 before it was chic or travel was comfortable to get there, and to the bottom of the Grand Canyon for rustic camping and rafting the Colorado River (twice!). Janice also delighted in spending tamer but relaxing time at her vacation homes at Lake Tahoe and Pajaro Dunes on Monterey Bay, where she enjoyed entertaining friends and family in great style.
Janice was preceded in death by her husband of 65 years, Howard Garnick, and is survived by her four children - Marilyn Kittleson (Dan) of Sonoma, Steven Garnick (Nancy) and Anne Kuelz (Paul) of Danville, and Larry Garnick (Terri) of San Mateo; her ten grandchildren - Robert Kittleson, Amy Jacobs, Sarah Murphy, Karen Randall, Scott Garnick, Lindsey Hayes, Alison Ackerman, Jessica Kuelz, Devin Garnick and Maxwell Garnick; and her ten great-grandchildren (with more on the way) - Liliana, Claire, Summer, Casey, Oliver, Leland, Juliette, Nora, Adelyn, and Taylor.
The family has honored Janice in a private memorial service held on December 27, 2025.
Janice was born in Oakland, California in 1928 and was an East Bay Area resident all of her life. She spent her childhood in Piedmont, California, living in the home built by her parents on Estates Drive, and attended Piedmont High School. She graduated from Stanford University in 1950 with a degree in Education. There, she met fellow Stanford student Howard Garnick who held a part time job bussing tables in her all girl dormitory, and they were married in June, 1950.
Janice and Howard lived for a time in Oakland, but moved to San Leandro, California in 1958 where they lived in their lovely brick home on Arbor Drive for the next 30+ years. There, Janice managed the fun filled childhood of her four children - Marilyn, Steven, Anne and Larry. She was a cub scout den mother, a significant volunteer in her children’s schools, and a leader in her church. She was an instigator in her children’s lives, finding all sorts of activities for them to engage in, attend, and take lessons in. She was an excellent tennis player and enjoyed years of team play with many friends. She was an avid bridge player, a great skier, a golf enthusiast, and a lover of the outdoors, camping and hiking. She was a jokester and loved to play tricks on friends and family, always with a twinkle in her eye. She was musical and enjoyed singing and performing. In short, Janice was the facilitator of interesting and joyous activities not only for her children but also for friends and extended family, and she was greatly loved and admired by them for her sense of humor, athleticism, intelligence, enthusiasm, leadership, kindness, and all around charisma.
She also loved to travel; Janice and Howard ventured together to every continent and most every country you can imagine. They were adventurous, journeying to Papua New Guinea to see the “Sing Sing” many years ago, to China just after it opened to western travelers in 1979, to the U.S.S.R. in the 1960’s, to Antarctica in 1995 before it was chic or travel was comfortable to get there, and to the bottom of the Grand Canyon for rustic camping and rafting the Colorado River (twice!). Janice also delighted in spending tamer but relaxing time at her vacation homes at Lake Tahoe and Pajaro Dunes on Monterey Bay, where she enjoyed entertaining friends and family in great style.
Janice was preceded in death by her husband of 65 years, Howard Garnick, and is survived by her four children - Marilyn Kittleson (Dan) of Sonoma, Steven Garnick (Nancy) and Anne Kuelz (Paul) of Danville, and Larry Garnick (Terri) of San Mateo; her ten grandchildren - Robert Kittleson, Amy Jacobs, Sarah Murphy, Karen Randall, Scott Garnick, Lindsey Hayes, Alison Ackerman, Jessica Kuelz, Devin Garnick and Maxwell Garnick; and her ten great-grandchildren (with more on the way) - Liliana, Claire, Summer, Casey, Oliver, Leland, Juliette, Nora, Adelyn, and Taylor.
The family has honored Janice in a private memorial service held on December 27, 2025.
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