Jane Moore Palmer

"Love, Jane."

Jane M. Palmer, a retired psychiatric social worker, devoted countless hours to one of her life's greatest passions: composing hand-written, deeply personal cards. She wrote thousands over the decades, and it was her distinctive way of sustaining important relationships with her many friends and family members. The writing process was deliberate, and email was out of the question. First, she wrote a rough draft, with dictionary at hand for accuracy. Once satisfied, she would copy the final version - in her uniquely economical cursive - onto the carefully chosen card. She signed her cards "Love, Jane", which became her family nickname. "Love Jane" died on February 14, 2023, at her Lyme farmhouse and only steps away from her writing desk.

Jane spent her childhood in Wellesley, Ma, where she met her first husband, Barrie Michael "Mike" Moore, in 4th grade. A 1953 graduate of Oberlin College, she was guided initially by her family's predilection for business careers. In 1954, she completed Radcliffe's Management Training Program and then spent three years grading papers as an Assistant in Courses at the Harvard Business School, where her father, Frank Tucker, was a professor of finance and where Mike Moore pursued his MBA. The two married after his graduation in 1957 and settled in Cincinnati after Mike opted for a career at Procter & Gamble Co.

Business would not sustain Jane's interests for long. Independent, curious and in search of rewarding work, Jane relished volunteer roles-as a member of the Junior League of Cincinnati and as a docent at the Cincinnati Art Museum - while raising three children. At 40, Jane made one of the most consequential decisions of her life: the pursuit of a graduate degree in social work. At the time, Jane was excited by the nascent feminist movement and decided she needed something else: a paycheck! (Indeed, she was so influenced by the inaugural issue of Ms. Magazine in 1972 that she named the family's black Labrador Retriever "Ms." and called her Mizzy.) After two years of commuting weekly to Columbus, Jane received her Master's in Social Work from Ohio State University in 1975 and then began her search for the perfect part-time job: one that would still permit her to play tennis and pursue interests in gardening, baking, and traveling. In spring 1977, she found it: counseling the families of autistic children at Children's Psychiatric Center of the Jewish Hospital, and she arranged for the job to start in September, following her family's return from their annual August vacation in Chatham, Ma.

Jane's career decision proved sadly fortuitous: Her husband died of a brief and rare illness in August 1977 at age 46, and she became a single parent with children ages 12, 14 and 16. Work became a lifeline: a source of colleagues, stimulation, and esteem, and it would continue to sustain her for 18 years at Children's Psychiatric Center and later Jewish Family Service. She was widowed for 15 years when she met George H. Palmer, a former Ohio Court of Appeals judge and W.W.II veteran. They married in 1992, and in 1996 they found their idyll: a 1789 farmhouse in Lyme. The move introduced them to the natural beauty of the Upper Valley, new friends and rewarding volunteer jobs. Jane did counseling at Lyme Elementary School and Hospice, and served with the Utility Club and board of directors of Child & Family Services - when she wasn't knee-deep in her flower and vegetable gardens. Volunteering consumed much of Jane's prodigious energy, although it is likely that she will be remembered most for the passion she had for the people in her life. She treasured her connections with people and one-on-one conversations. Those cards-filled with family news, observations, reportage on life in Lyme and often recipes and newspaper clippings-were legion.

Jane was predeceased by George Palmer, who died at 90 on Feb. 24, 2014. She is survived by her three Moore children: Pamela (Charles Rose) of Belmont, Ma.; Douglas (Therese) of Minneapolis; Nicholas (Iru Wang) of Lyme; a brother, Richard "Dick" Tucker of Chestnut Hill, Ma.; plus eight grandchildren: Michael, Emma, Emily, Anneliese, Lucy, Laura, George and Leo.

Jane did not wish to have a funeral, and at this time, no service is planned. Her family is contemplating a memorial service for springtime, when her beautiful gardens begin blooming again. Your input is welcome; please write Nick Moore at 172 Baker Hill Rd., Lyme, NH, 03768.

If you would like to make a donation in Jane's memory, please direct it to one of her favorite volunteer projects, a post-secondary scholarship fund for Lyme students. https://www.lymefoundation.org/donate. Or you may mail a check to: The Lyme Foundation, P.O. Box 292, Lyme, NH, 03768. Please note: in memory of Jane Palmer, for the Griffith's Fund.