- Date Of Birth: November 11, 1936
- Date Of Death: May 21, 2022
- State: Texas
Jan Carpenter, born Jan Jewell Jordan to Hattie and Marvin Jordan in Art, Texas in November 1936, passed away on May 21, 2022. She had her husband Owen and her children Trey, Carol, and John at her side while she battled pancreatic cancer for months from her home in Austin, Texas.
Jan lived a life of service and compassion. She was an outstanding role model and friend to all who knew her. Like her name, Jan was a jewel; precious and able to light up an entire room with her contagious laughter.
She was the middle sibling in a family of five children. The old 1875 ranch house she called home didn’t have a lot of privacy. With one bathroom, 2 brothers and 2 sisters, Jan cherished the quiet times when she could be alone sitting on the trunk of an old leaned over oak tree quietly reading a book. Her great grandfather donated the ground for the Art Community School located just a couple of hundred yards across Willow Creek from her home.
Many times her home was packed to the ceiling with visiting children staying over for the week while they attended school. As his father before him, Marvin opened his home regularly to weary travelers and kids looking to avoid a many miles daily round trip to the school on foot.
She attended the school in Art and then in the 4th Grade rode the bus to Mason Elementary. She went on to graduate from Mason High School in 1955. Throughout high school Jan was outgoing and sociable making many lifelong friends.
She was elected Class Favorite her sophomore and junior years, FFA Sweetheart her senior year and served as an officer in FHA, Student Council, Speech Club, and Choral Club. Jan participated in drama, baseball, basketball, and pep squad. She also enjoyed cheering and served as head cheerleader her senior year.
After graduating, Jan moved to Austin, Texas to attend Nixon Clay Business College. She paid her way working for The United Fund as an executive secretary. She also modeled and represented the YWCA in the Miss Austin Pageant.
She met her lifelong love, Owen P. Carpenter Jr. on a blind date in 1960. A few months later, they were married at the Art United Methodist Church and last fall celebrated their 61st anniversary. Jan and Owen traveled across the US and beyond. She treasured her memories from their adventures together in Mexico, Alaska, Costa Rica, Canada, Europe, Australia and more.
Jan was a devoted wife and mother, volunteering for years as the class Room Mother, President of the PTO, and Cub Scout Den Mother. She attended every cross-country meet, every football, soccer, volleyball, basketball, and baseball game that she could for all three of her children.
Her grandchildren were the pride of her life, and spending time with them always brought her great happiness. Known to her grandchildren as Granny Jan or Gigi, she attended their sports, plays, concerts, and more. She would make the summers special at Camp Granny Jan by taking them on many great adventures sharing her enthusiasm for nature, art, music, theatre, and history.
A champion of education, Jan volunteered countless hours at her children’s school libraries. After her children graduated, she turned her focus on helping ensure the success of the Westbank Community Library. She volunteered for nearly 30 years and even served as a Board Member and Treasurer. She was named Volunteer Extraordinaire in 2001. In her spare time, Jan was an avid reader sometimes reading several books at once.
She supported many institutions from PBS to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center to the Austin Museum of Art Guild. Jan wasn’t just a supporter of the arts but also a patron. She loved the theater and attending concerts as well as plays, operas and musicals. As a kid staying at Granny Jan’s often meant substituting for Owen at a play or musical that was in town. Jan loved music and her playlists often contained local musical artists.
She never forgot a birthday and made every holiday memorable. Occasionally when entertaining grandchildren, she would treat them to a proper tea party. She had a strong sense of fashion and beamed of elegance whether she was at the theater or in a jon boat fishing with Owen. She was at peace in the outdoors: working in her beautiful garden, holding a fishing rod in her hands, or sitting beneath the stars at the family’s Blue Mountain Ranch.
Jan will be desperately missed and is survived by Owen P. Carpenter, Jr., her beloved husband; their children, Owen Price Carpenter, III (Trey) and wife Fiona Carpenter, Carol Lampman and husband David Lampman, John Carpenter and wife Jamie Carpenter; her grandchildren, Claire and Price Carpenter, Anne and Tommy Lampman and Scout and Sofia Carpenter; her sisters, Vida Joseph and Gloria Bielfeldt and many nieces, nephews and loving friends.
Jan is preceded in death by her parents and brothers Charles, Nathaniel and Herbert Jordan.
