Janet W. Zoni

Janet W. Zoni, née Janet Ruth Williamson, passed away in the early morning of August 30, 2025, at the age of 74. By God's grace she left this world without pain or worry and in the loving embrace of family, with countless others holding her fast in their hearts.
Born on March 28, 1951, in the town of Minetto, New York, in Oswego County, Janet was the youngest of three daughters of Ivan and Marjorie Williamson. She graduated from Oswego High School in 1968 and earned a degree in English literature from the State University of New York at Oswego four years later. Janet met her future husband, Mark Zoni, in 1972 and married in 1978 at the United Methodist Church in Minetto, and later that year, the couple moved to Erie, Pennsylvania, where they took root and eventually raised their four children.
In the hearts of so many, her name is Mrs. Zoni – a lifelong teacher. After working a short time as a reporter for The Oswego Valley News in Fulton, New York, Janet began a career in education, first with the Oswego County Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) focusing on adult education, then later at Young Environment Daycare, Tracy Elementary, and St. Stanislaus Schools in Erie. She felt most at home at Our Lady of Peace School, where she was a teacher for more than 20 years. In that time, she taught a range of subjects and grade levels, enriching the lives of hundreds of students with a pedagogic approach led by humility, compassion, and her singular, whimsical sense of humor. The relationships she forged with her fellow faculty at OLP remained precious to her long after her retirement, and served as a source of joy and strength in her final days.
Most ardently, Janet was a mother, and by more than any other name she was called Mom. This is the role she held most sacred, devoting the same energy and love to her children's smallest triumphs as she did in the darkest hours of their discontent. She will be forever cherished in the hearts of her husband and children for her selflessness, voice of rationality and wisdom, and her eagerness to take on the pain of others so that their burden might be a little lighter in this life.
Janet is survived by her husband, Mark A. Zoni; her four children: Jonathan and his partner Shawna; Christopher and his partner Christina and their daughters Victoria and Marilyn; son Stephen, and daughter Mary-Kathryn and her partner Nicholas; her sister Daryl and brother-in-law William Martin; and her beloved companion, Eli. She was predeceased by her parents Ivan and Marjorie and sister Kathleen.
A viewing will be held on Friday, September 12th from 3:00 - 7:00 pm at Brugger Funeral Home at 1595 West 38th St. in Erie, Pennsylvania. A mass will be held on Saturday, September 13th at 11:00 am at Our Lady of Peace Church at 2401 West 38th St. All are welcome to attend and celebrate Janet's life.