Jane Kenemuth Zaidi

Sarah "Jane" Kenemuth Zaidi of Mercer Island, WA, known as Jane-or "Janie" in her youth-- passed away at home on February 12, 2021, surrounded by her family and supported by hospice care. Jane was 84 and the cause of death was late stage squamous cell cancer.

Born to a multigenerational farming family in Western Pennsylvania, Jane was the eldest daughter of Kermit Norman Kenemuth and Theodosia ("Theda") Perry Kenemuth, from the tiny former oil boomtown of Fern. A child of the depression who legitimately "trudged a mile through the snow" on the way to and from the school bus stop, Jane grew up determined to expand her horizons and explore the world. While of very modest means, her parents were both college-educated teachers who placed a premium on learning, a legacy that endures.

Jane graduated Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Allegheny College, which she attended on a four-year full scholarship, earned by placing first in a state-sponsored contest. A Political Science and Modern Language major, Jane, who dreamed of a career in International Relations, spent time working in Washington, DC and began an advanced degree program at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy in Boston, Massachusetts.

Like many women of her generation, Jane's opportunity for a professional career was side-lined when she met, fell in love with, and married her husband of 30 years, Manzur H. Zaidi of Karachi, Pakistan. Manzur, who pre-deceased his wife in 1989--also of cancer--had a long and distinguished diplomatic career with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). Posted to Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Brazil, Jamaica, Botswana-as well as at United Nations headquarters in New York--Jane was a tireless and enthusiastic partner as her husband's career took them all over the world. Raising her family and maintaining stability through many relocations and cultural adaptations, Jane ensured that her children had educational opportunities to succeed and took great pride in their professional accomplishments.

While in New York, Jane earned a Master's Degree in Library Science from Columbia University and in 1971 went on to serve as the establishing Medical Archivist for The New York Hospital - Cornell Medical Center in Manhattan. She subsequently also worked in college administration at Amherst and Hampshire Colleges in Massachusetts.

Itinerant most of their married life, Jane and Manzur settled in the early 1980's in Amherst, Massachusetts, which served as Jane's primary residence for two decades. Though she loved New England-and was cheering for Tom Brady in the Super Bowl days before she died--Jane relocated many years ago to be with her children and grandchildren in Seattle.

Known for her razor-sharp intellect, formidable memory, and as a font of entertaining stories of her youth and travels-sometimes vividly and memorably enacting scenes, such as when a borrowed draft horse fell upside down off of a barn ramp or a Black Mamba snake suddenly dropped from a tree in front of her toddler son-Jane was a vital participant in the raising of her four grandchildren and was delighted beyond measure to finally meet her first great- grandchild this past Christmas.

An undefeated 1970's Jeopardy contestant, champion of many a trivia contest, and avid crossword puzzler, Jane could readily drop an apt literary quote or historical reference, and was "sharp as a tack" until the very end. Humanitarian and unrelenting champion of the underdog, her drive to help the world's most disadvantaged was an animating passion. Jane was a loving and supportive matriarch who will be remembered for her talents-from cooking gourmet feasts for large diplomatic parties to creating family celebrations with love and care to sewing beautiful costumes for her grandchildren--and for her deep love of her family, whom she, quoting Queen Cornelia of Rome, cited as her treasured "jewels."

Jane is survived by her three children, all of Mercer Island, WA: Lisa Y. Zaidi, (Glenn J. Blumstein), Jamil A. Zaidi, and Selma A. Zaidi, with whom she lived for the past six years, along with their beloved dog, Atlas. Her granddaughter, Katherine P. Blumstein (Christopher J. Skayne) and infant great-granddaughter, Persephone J. Skayne, live in

Brooklyn, NY, as does her grandson, Benjamin G. Blumstein (Madeline E. Holland). Her two younger grandsons, Amir E. Zaidi and Alden M. Zaidi, live on Mercer Island with their father, Jamil. Jane is also survived by her brother, Dale K. Kenemuth (Marjorie) of Potomac, MD and sister Kay Jean Gray (Edward) of Sanibel, FL, nieces and nephews, Jim, Sarah, Paul, Ruth, Christine, Catherine, Lori and Brad, great nephews and nieces, as well as extended family members of her late husband in Pakistan.

Per her expressed wishes, Jane's ashes will be buried near her husband in Amherst, MA, attended by her immediate family and without an organized service. Donations in her memory may be made to Providence Hospice (www.providence.org/hospiceofseattle), to which the family is deeply indebted, or to the American Cancer Society.