Jane Greimann

AMES - After a courageous battle with lung cancer, the spirit of Jane Greimann of Ames, age 64, left her body and went to be with her Lord. She died at Israel Family Hospice in Ames on Saturday (Feb. 4, 2006).

A worship service entitled "Witness to the Resurrection" will begin at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 9, at Collegiate Presbyterian Church in Ames and is to be officiated by the Rev. Larry Mitchell and the Rev. Vicky Curtis.

In lieu of a post-worship reception, family and friends may gather to visit with Jane's family prior to the service at 9 am in the church.

Jane's body will be cremated, followed by a private burial of her cremains at 8:30 a.m. at the ISU Cemetery prior to the worship service.

Jane was born on Jan. 25, 1942, in Klemme, Iowa, to Chet and Ina Mae (Jarchow) Renner. She grew up on the farm, learning to love horses, holding leadership positions in 4-H and graduating from Klemme High School in 1960. Jane acquired a degree from Iowa State University in textile and clothing in 1964 and a teaching certificate in 1980.

One week following graduation, Jane married Lowell Greimann in Klemme, Iowa, on June 7, 1964. They moved to Boulder, Colo., where Jane worked as a seamstress and then as an office worker to support her husband's further education and proudly bore their first son, Chad.

The young family moved to San Antonio, Texas, where their second son, Blair, was born. While in Texas, Jane worked with children in the Hispanic community and with low-income adults.

The Greimanns returned to Ames in 1973 to be nearer to parents and grandparents. Jane flew to Chicago in 1975 to bring home their adopted daughter, Amy, who just arrived from Vietnam.

Jane taught art, health, and family and consumer science at Nevada Junior High School for sixteen years. While teaching, she worked on studies of student health with regard to cholesterol and helped to start a breakfast program. She taught parenting classes, made a five-week trip to Russia in 1992 and sat on the Board of Eastern Story County Youth and Shelter Services. Jane retired from full-time employment in 1998.

Jane served in almost every volunteer position at Collegiate Presbyterian Church, including chair of the most recent pastor search committee, elder, deacon, Sunday school teacher for both children and adults, co-leader of a mid-week program for children, the Walk Through Bethlehem Project and other committees.

She served in the House of Representatives of the Iowa Legislature for five years and on such committees as public education funding, human services, environment, judicial, human resources, and natural resources. She was on the Mid-Iowa Community Action Board and Hawk-I-State Board. Jane believed in more preventive programs and more humane sentencing laws in our corrections system.

Jane volunteered for several service activities in the community, including president of the Local League of Women Voters, Democratic caucus organizer, Ames Public Art Commission (Jane initiated Art Around the Corner in downtown Ames) and the Education and Prevention Board of Youth and Shelter Services. She was an alumnus and supporter of the Iowa State University College of Family and Consumer Science (now Human Sciences) and the ISU football and basketball programs.

A broad diversity of interests kept Jane active outside of her professional and volunteer career activities: horses, friends, shade gardening, painting, clay pottery and sculpture, home improvement projects, sewing, reading and cutting her husband's hair.

Jane will be greatly missed by her husband, Lowell Greimann, of Ames, three children and six grandchildren: Chad (Chris) Greimann, and their children, Zachary, Emma, Alexander and Evelyn Mae of Iowa City; Amy (Winston) Trotter and their child, Isabella, of Bolingbrook, Ill.; and Blair (Angie) Greimann and their child, Eve, of Denver Colo. Additional survivors include Jane's father, Chet (Elsie) Renner of Clear Lake; and two brothers, Bill Renner of Garner, and Tom Renner of Ventura.

Jane's mother, Ina Mae Renner, preceded her in death.

A special time to gather in honor of the memory of Jane's life will be celebrated beginning at 7 p.m. on Wednesday at Reiman Gardens (see http://www.reimangardens.iastate.edu/index.cfm?nodeID=5727 for location) in Ames. Throughout the evening, opportunity will be given for friends and family to share personal remembrances of Jane.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to Israel Family Hospice of Ames or the William R. Bliss Cancer Center, 1111 Duff Ave., Ames, IA 50010.

Adams Funeral Home, 502 Douglas Ave., Ames, (515) 232-5121.