Janette ‘Jan’ Edwards Black, loving wife, mother, and grandmother, of Madison, AL, passed away on Monday, March 24, 2025, at Hospice Family Care in Huntsville, AL. She was 96 years old. Her family was blessed to know that she was at peace and ready to be with her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Jan was born in Holly, MI to Robert and Marjorie Edwards on September 4, 1928. She was the oldest of three sisters who had wild adventures in their youth. Thankfully, Jan wrote about them for us in one of her many written memoirs. She attended Fenton High School and graduated in 1946. The following year she began dating her high school crush, Dick, when he returned from the war. Nine months later they got engaged and were married on May 16, 1948. Her greatest joy and success was as a loving and supportive wife and mother. She also spent several years working as a middle school math teacher’s aide and then as a real estate agent.
Jan was an avid Bridge player, reader, and lover of birds and college football. She was active in the Mid-Shore League of Republican Women, proudly serving as their president. During that time, she was awarded the “Maryland Senate Barbara Kendall Outstanding Service Award” and the “Mid-Shore League of Republican Women Talbot County Republican Mother of the Year Award”. Additionally, she served as president of the Izaak Walton League of America in Easton, MD. She also enjoyed participating in the Talbot County Women’s Club, the Red Hat Society, and the Easton Memorial Hospital Auxiliary. Finally, Jan was a former member, as well as deacon and elder of the Presbyterian Church of Easton, MD.
Jan is survived by her sons, D. Robert (Barbara) of Coral Gables, FL, Russell (Donna) of Huntsville, AL, and James (Beth), of Central Lake, MI; 8 grandchildren; 13 great-grandchildren; 1 niece and 3 nephews. In addition to her parents and husband, Jan was preceded in death by her two sisters, Virginia and Marvel.
Funeral Services will be held at Laughlin Service Funeral Home on Thursday, April 3, 2025, at 11am. Visitation will begin at 10am. Pastor John Dees of CrossPointe Church will be officiating the memorial service. Burial will be at a later date at the Maryland Veterans Cemetery in Crownsville, MD with her late husband Richard (Dick) Black.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests contributions be made to Canines for Coping, a program of Huntsville Hospital Foundation. Jan had a particularly special interaction with Vivian, the black lab therapy dog, during her final hospital stay. Many of you know her affinity for black labs and how much this bonding time meant to her. We would love to help others have similar experiences in the future in honor of her memory. https://www.huntsvillehospitalfoundation.org/caninesforcoping
