Jane M. Page

Jane M. Page, age 91, died on March 31 after living with Parkinson's Disease for many years. She was the center of an extended group of family and friends and will be greatly missed.

Jane was born in 1919 in Weyauwega, Wisconsin, the second child of George and Lena Hockstock. George worked as a railroad bridge tender at Gills Landing on the Wolf River. Jane's older brother, Paul, had a bad habit of falling into the river, so George and Lena moved to a farm in Lind Center. Jane was only a few years old when the family relocated to Green Bay, where her younger sister Charlotte (Charlie) was born.

Jane grew up on their small farm a mile past the last street car stop on the west side of town. She attended Chappell grade school, then a four-room schoolhouse on the outskirts of Green Bay. She was an avid reader as a child. She graduated from West High School in 1936, where she served as a student librarian. Jane would like to have gone to college, but it was the Depression and her family could not afford it. So after graduating, she went to work for Schweger's drugstore as a bookkeeper.

One day, she drove her dad's car to work and accidentally hung it up on a carriage stoop. A handsome young man from Stone Motors came to her rescue. They began to date and in 1937 she and Don Page were married. (Actually, they went off to Michigan one weekend and eloped. Their families did not find out about it until several months later!) They built a small house on the Hockstock farmstead on Perkins Avenue in Green Bay.

In 1938, Jane stopped working in anticipation of the arrival of the first of their three children, Donna. Allyn and Judi followed in 1942 and 1948. In 1950, Don and Jane moved off the farmland and built a large, new home for their family on Oneida Street. For the next several years, Jane worked diligently as a stay-at-home mom -- cooking, cleaning, gardening and keeping a watchful eye on her brood. Like her mother before her, she enjoyed handcrafts of all kinds. She made quilts, did cross-stitch embroidery, and sewed most of the clothes she and her children wore. Jane also loved to travel and the family pulled a camper on many road trips, including visits to Yellowstone Park, the Grand Canyon, California, Niagara Falls and New York City.

When her youngest child was old enough, Jane went back to school, took shorthand to improve her secretarial skills and returned to work. Her places of employment included Southwest High School, UW Green Bay and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, where she worked until she retired in 1978. During this time, she also joined the Neville Public Museum's Geology Club, going on many rock hunting field trips with them. She enjoyed collecting and classifying rocks and doing lapidary projects.

After retiring, Jane and Don spent their winters migrating to warmer climates with their travel trailer. They visited Florida and Texas, but especially liked Arizona and made repeated trips there. Between trips they enjoyed visiting with family and friends and watching the next generation, Shelly, Kim and Jessica, develop. In addition to her other retirement activities, Jane completed many lovely counted cross-stitch pieces for herself and other family members. Jane remained in their Oneida Street home following Don's sudden death in 1997, but in 2005, her declining health required a change, so she moved to Madison to live with her youngest child, Judi.

Jane was preceded in death by her parents, husband Don, brother Paul and sister Charlotte. She is survived by her children Allyn (Carol) Page of Green Bay and Donna and Judi Page of Madison; her grandchildren Shelly (Scott) Turner of Pulaski, Kimberly Page of Green Bay and Jessica Page of Madison; and her great-grandchildren Brooklyn and Autumn Turner. Also surviving Jane are her special nieces Bonnie, Sue, Sally, Mary, Clarice, Gail and their families; her cousins Alene (Jim) Smith and Howard (Joan) Schmidt; and sister-in-law Em Hockstock of Michigan.

Memorial visitations will be held in Madison in the Chapel at HospiceCare, Inc., 5395 E. Cheryl Parkway on April 6 from 3:00-7:00pm and in Green Bay at Lyndahl's Funeral Home, 1350 Lombardi Avenue, on April 8 from 4:00-7:00pm.

The family wishes to thank the Respite Care Ministry of St. Peter's Church, St. Mary's Adult Day Health Center and HospiceCare, Inc. for their support and kindness during Jane's final years. In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate any donations be directed to St. Mary's Adult Day Health Center in Madison or the NEW Zoo near Green Bay.