Janet Rasmussen Obituary

Janet Rasmussen July 16, 1935 - June 14, 2008 Janet Rasmussen passed away peacefully on June 14, 2008. Born in Seattle, WA and a Bay Area resident for over 50 years. Jan was preceded in death by her husband Minor. She was a loving mother to her children Scott and his wife Lisa of Groveland; Kristin and her husband Dave of San Jose. Doting grandmother (Nana) to her grandchildren Ethan and Emily. Jan was an animal lover, an avid reader and a huge sports fan. She was quick to smile with a great sense of humor. She will be greatly missed. Friends are invited to join the family for a memorial service at 4 p.m. June 21 at the Willow Glen Funeral Chapel. In lieu of flowers, please make gifts in Jan's memory to: Humane Society Silicon Valley.

To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.

Published by San Jose Mercury News on Jun. 18, 2008.

Memories and Condolences
for Janet Rasmussen

12 Entries

Bobmerrick

June 12, 2023

Miss ya, Jan!

Kathy Goggiano

July 2, 2008

Dear Kristin,

I have so many fond memories of your mom. Jan was always so wonderful to all of us girls growing up. We had such a great time sitting in her kitchen, eating her great food and joking with each other. Jan was always right there with us and completed the group so nicely. Her laugh alone could make you laugh, even if you did not know what the subject matter was. I miss those days....

The slide show on this website was absolutely wonderful. Kristin, your children are beautiful! What a wonderful gift you have and were able to share with your mom.

Please know you are in my heart and mind. I am so sorry for your loss. Jan was a wonderful person and I know she will be truly missed by so many.

Bob Merrick

June 27, 2008

JAN RASMUSSEN

I'd like to pay this tribute to Jan Rasmussen:

Jan was great to have as our next door neighbor! Actually we met her husband, Minor, first. Both our houses were under construction and both only to the framing stage. One day my wife, Lee, and I were walking around inspecting our place and we could look across and see another couple (our new neighbors) doing the same thing. Suddenly, the man walked over and said, excuse me, I notice you're putting a wet bar in your house. And I said yes, we are. Are you? He said, Oh, no. We're Jahova's Witnesses and we don't drink!
I thought to myself, just our luck, neighbors who don't party! Just then Jan approached. She introduced Minor and herself, straigtened us out about Minor's Jahova's Witness story, and invited us over for a glass of wine! Thus began years of freindship.

It was the fall of 1967 when we moved into our new homes. Jan's son Scott was about 3, and her daughter Kristin was only a few month's old. My youngest daughter, Katy, was just a few months younger than Kristin. Therefore, Lee and Jan had a lot in common: They were both moms with little girls; They grew to be close friends over the years, and so did the girls. I always got a kick out of the way Jan would referred to children-- anyone's children-- as the "little people." She created a lot of original expressions like that and was a wonderful conversationalist.

Jan had her hands full raising Scott. As a three year old, he was always surprising us and amusing us with his antics. One evening Lee and I were in our kitchen when suddenly we heard a loud "pop" as our power went out. I went to our front door to see what had happened and I found Scotty, as we called him then, holding a large BBQ fork which he had stuck into a power outlet on our front porch! Luckily, the fork had a wooden handle or Scott wouldn't be here with us today! Though Scott is a a few years older, he and my son, John, were great buddies.

Jan was a good swimmer and she and Minor had put a very nice swimming pool in their backyard. Very generously, Jan would often invite Lee and I and our kids over for a swim. This became so much of a summer ritual each year that Minor finally installed a gate that connected our backyards so we wouldn't have to walk around to the front. Now that's a good neighbor!

Jan was a terrific entertainer in her home, often hosting pool parties, potlucks, and fancy dinner parties for neighbors and friends. She was always the life of any party, remembering everyone's name and keeping things lively. Consequently she was frequently at the top of everyone's invitation list for other parties. Jan was an avid reader, a good bridge player, an animal lover, and a huge sports fan. Go niners!

Jan and Lee continued to be fast friends until that very sad day in 1999 when Lee lost her battle with cancer. Before long, Jan took it upon herself to become a close and dear friend to my daughter Katy who found a comforting link to her mom through Jan. For that, I am very grateful to Jan.

Jan had also been good friends with Marion Shuster. When Marion died a few years before Lee, Jan also became a mother figure to Marion's daughter, Marybeth. So you can see that Jan was a wonderful thougtful and caring person who helped whenever she could and however she could.

As our oldest daughter, Anne, blessed us with four grandchildren, Jan would shower each of them with gifts over the years on many occasions, proving that she really liked the little people!

More recently, Jan herself was blessed with two beautiful twin grandkids, Ethan and Emily, born to Kristin and Dave. She very much enjoyed being a grandmother and dotting on the babies and showering them with gifts. They called her "Nana." Fortunately she lived close enough to visit them often.

Finally, I think Jan will be remembered mainly for her selfless generosity, her keen sense of humor, her lively personality, and for her sincere friendliness. May God bless Jan for being in our lives!

Thank you.

Katy Marrick

June 27, 2008

I feel so fortunate to have a lifetime of memories growing up with Jan in my life...All my life...And like she had done for Beth, she didn't hesitate to step in and take me in as her own when I needed her most.
When my mom passed there were only three people in the room...and she was one of them...she came over everyday when my mom was sick, and gave me a little break and nobody asked her to do that, she just did it...That was the kind of friend Jan was..truly a friend til the end.
These past few years it has been such a joy to watch her come to life over the birth of her two grandchildren Emily & Ethan.....
When Emily & Ethan were born they truly became the light of her life...and she so enjoyed being a grandmother...I posted a picture in the ' photo album ' on this site that shows a bit of what I saw when she was with her grand babies...
Jan my dear friend and second mom...I will miss you more than I could ever begin to explain.....Thank you for all that you have given to me...You have added to my life and I am a better person because you were here : )
Love and remember you always : )
KatyClare ( wee-kate)

Mary Beth Seavers-Conway

June 24, 2008

I feel so blessed to have had Jan in my life. She has always been one of the guiding forces in my life. All the way back to when she told me to get off the diving board for she hadn't yet taught me to swim. I replied with a "Your not my Mom", and Jan never let me forget that one. She teased me that I was so stubborn but boy did she prove me wrong on that statment. She was as much a mother to me as my own and when I needed her she was always there. She stepped in 16 years ago when I lost my Mom and always made sure I knew that she loved me like a daughter, even when I was bratty and didn't deserve it. She loved like a mother to me and all those she knew. Unconditional love and support, with laughs and tears she guided us into adulthood, marriage and parenthood. I will be forever grateful to have been on the receiving end of that love and she will be greatly missed. Thank you Kristin and Scott for sharing her with me for 35 years and you know my thoughts and prayers are with you when I can't be.

Hugh Seavers

June 24, 2008

I have such wonderful memories of the time that was spent being with the Rasmussen family. Jan and I had a very close bond that never went away even after I had moved from the great Vista Knoll area. Our chicken jokes were something only Jan and I shared. What a wonderful sense of humor she had. We laughed so much and so hard that people thought there was something wrong with the two of us. My memories will last forever.
Dave, Krilstin, and Scott my prayers and are with you during this time of grief.

I miss you so much, thank you for everything, thank you for caring about me, you have been part of my entire life...especially these last few years...love and remember you always, Katy Merrick

June 20, 2008

Stan McCarthy

June 19, 2008

I'll always remember some of the holiday swim parties we had at Jan's house on Vista Knoll! I'm sure she has now reunited with Minor in the great beyond.

Bob Merrick

June 19, 2008

Jan out did all her peers as a fun person to be around, as a friend when you needed one, as a most generous person, and, last but not least, as an accomplished party giver! I extend my sincere condolences to her kids, Kristin & Dave and Scott, and to her closest friends.

Dale Brown

June 18, 2008

I'll always remember Jan's great sense of humor and her loving and giving way with people. She is now probably having a bridge game with some of her dear friends who have preceded her to wherever wonderful people like her go.
Love, Dale and El

Lloyd and Dorothy Summers

June 18, 2008

Dear Kristin and David,

Our hearts ache for you in the loss of your mother, mother-in-law, and Nana. Nothing pleased her more than the birth of her darling grandchildren Ethan and Emily. She will be missed by all who knew her as an active, enthusiastic, and smiling friend. How lucky your are to have so many cherished memories.

Suzanne Morrison

June 18, 2008

Dear Kristen & David and kids.
Words fail me as I feel such heartache for you. Such loss of life in such a short time. May your memories bring a smile to your face and may you find strength in the kindness of others. Let me know if there is any thing that I can do to help you.

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