Muriel England Friend Jannery

Muriel "Marti" England Friend Jannery, who in childhood was called Bunty, died on March 14, 2026 in Onancock, Virginia at the age of 85. Her passing reunites her with her husband of more than half a century, Arthur "Art" Armand Jannery, who died in 2012 at age 80. Together, they built a life marked by devotion, humor, and a quiet steadiness that shaped everyone around them.

Mrs. Jannery was born in June 1940 in Brooklyn, New York and grew up in New Britain, Connecticut. After college she moved to Boston, where a lighthearted office mishap changed her life. She had inadvertently inserted the ribbon into a colleague's typewriter upside down. He went looking for the culprit and found her, though the frustration melted quickly into conversation. That colleague was Art Jannery, and their first date, a walk along the Charles River, began a partnership that endured for more than fifty years.

The couple married in 1962 at the Boston University chapel, where Mr. Jannery was completing a graduate degree in music theory. They raised three children, Jonathan, Beth, and Melanie Jannery, who grew up together in Radford, Virginia and Westfield, Massachusetts and currently live in Massachusetts, Virginia, and Vermont. Their granddaughters, Skye Jannery Barney and Tess Jannery Barney, were among the great joys of their later years. Known to them as Nonnie and Grandad, Art and Marti taught the girls to make Nonnie's fudge recipes, swam with dolphins, monitored sea turtles, learned to fish, and planned menus, carrying family traditions and small rituals into a new generation.

Mrs. Jannery worked for many years as an administrator at Westfield State College, now Westfield State University. She graduated from Becker Junior College. She was known for her gracious manner, her attention to detail, and her belief that presentation mattered. She was a hand quilter, a thoughtful decorator, and the creator of treasured Thanksgivings with family and spirited Fourth of July parties on Butternut Road. She carried herself with a combination of warmth and refinement that made her home feel like a place where everything had purpose and welcome.

Mr. Jannery was born in Millbury, Massachusetts. As a young boy he worked in a bakery, an experience that instilled in him a lifelong belief in hard work, honesty, and the courage of one's convictions. He served in intelligence during the Korean War, then became a professor of music and a writer. He played piano and cello with quiet generosity and spent many years researching the family's English, French, and Scottish history. Genealogy became one of his great passions.
He felt most at home outdoors. He gardened, dug, built, planted, and nurtured the land around him. He would often say he was heading into the garden and call him when dinner was ready. He returned with vegetables right from the garden that he placed on the clean kitchen counter, a familiar rhythm that captured the harmony of their contrasting temperaments: her precision and his earthiness, meeting in the middle as a life shared. Art and Marti were bestfriends as well as husband and wife.

In retirement in Palm Coast, Florida, Art and Marti enjoyed walking near the water, biking the Mount Vernon Trail during visits to Virginia, and exploring historic places. They shared a lifelong affection for collies and golden retrievers, animals that matched their sense of loyalty and companionship. A private ceremony will be held for the immediate family.

As a living tribute, trees will be planted in their memory through The Gifted Tree Memorial Trees, which supports reforestation in National and state forests. Further information is available at www.thegiftedtree.com/memorial-gift-tree.