Janette L. Foth

Janette Loretta Foth died on September 30, 2025, in Neenah, Wisconsin. She was 100 years old. Jan was born on November 16, 1924, to Frank and Louise (Loehning) Yaeger in Neenah. She was a loving wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother.
Jan was raised on Oak Street and graduated from Neenah High School in 1942. After high school, she attended Milwaukee County School of Nursing, graduating in 1946.
Jan met the love of her life, Don Foth, at Muench's Bowling Alley in Neenah. Don was a natural fit with Jan's family, frequently offering to help Jan's mother with dinner dishes. After Don was called back to military service, Jan and Don married on December 26, 1950. Don preceded her in death on February 25, 1996.
Jan worked at Theda Clark Memorial Hospital in Neenah from 1946 to 1984. A registered nurse, she worked in Surgery and ICU before being promoted to assistant director of nursing. In that role, Jan was the hospital's lead staff person on the PM shift (3 to 11 pm). She was responsible for all patients and staff on the hospital's six floors. When she was paged, Jan rarely used the elevators because she said they were too slow during critical times. She likely walked dozens of flights of stairs every day.
Jan and Don had two children: Tom (Becky) of Melrose, Massachusetts and Lisa (Scott) Hildebrand of Milwaukee. She also is survived by four grandchildren: Brian (Stephanie) Hildebrand, Kevin (Jen) Hildebrand, David (Shay) Foth, and Daniel Foth. Over the past three years, Jan became the proud great-grandmother to Oliver and Ava Hildebrand, Elias Foth, and Cameron and Ronan Hildebrand.
Jan was a caring, dedicated and compassionate nurse. A trailblazer and a mentor, she was not afraid to stand up to physicians who treated nurses poorly and never passed up an opportunity to learn about new ways to care for patients and their families. Indeed, Jan was one of the first nurses who learned to read an EKG.
In the 1970s, Jan completed a Death and Dying course based on the groundbreaking work of Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, which included writing her own obituary. At the time, she hoped to live until 69!
Jan treated everyone with respect and dignity, regardless of their race, religion or sexual orientation. Throughout her 100 years, she was never able to understand why people who didn't look like her or didn't share her beliefs were looked down upon in our country.
Jan was a two-time cancer survivor and an avid walker until her knees could no longer support her without severe pain, likely due to the many flights of stairs she climbed and hours standing at the hospital. She was a deeply spiritual person and an extremely talented knitter and weaver.
The family would like to thank the entire staff at Valley VNA, where she lived for nine years; Rebecca Philpot of ThedaCare; Gabriela Van Eperen of Ascension; and the staff at Heartland Hospice and Unity Hospice for their compassionate care.
Kessler Fahrenkrug Funeral Home is assisting the family, and a private memorial gathering will be held later this year. Memorial gifts may be made to the Arthritis Foundation or American Heart Association. Better yet, "do unto others as you would have them do unto you" (Matt. 7:12).