JANICE SIMONS.  A LIFE WELL LIVED.

Woke Up To Bad News.  I was sorry to find out this morning that my cousin, Janice Simons had died.  Its not that we were very close all these years.  I still remember her as my sweet little cousin, born a few months after my brother.  Being older by seven years, I never paid much attention to her.  She was my Uncle Norman's youngest daughter.

Uncle Norman Was The Oldest Sibling.   Uncle Norman was one of three boys born to my granddad, Hardy Storms.  He was also the least healthy.  They called it "leakage of the heart" in those days and he only lasted until age 37.  He died leaving a wife and three children.  All broken hearted. There were barely enough funds to bury him.  My Aunt Lois, was left with a small, almost broken down house and no income except for social security payments.  I would like to say that the rest of the family jumped in to help but the truth is, none of the rest had more more than enough for a minimal standard of living.  Aunt Lois didn't complain.  She took in ironing for years, raised her children well, and was active in her church.  She was well past 80 when she died.

My Sweet Little Cousin Started High School.  At least, I think she did but I'm pretty sure she didn't finish.  One of her neighbors, Dick Simons took an interest in her when she was around 14 years of age.  Dick wasn't much older, just a couple of years.  He was from a family just a small distance away.  They married when they were teenagers.  None of us expected much from them.  That was our first mistake.  Dick turned out to be a hard worker and a loyal employee of the Coors company in Golden.  He and Jan were married for more than 50 years.  They raised their family well and, although I didn't spend much time with them, I was really proud of the way they pulled together and did what they had to do raise a strong family.  

Uncle Norman's Heart Problem Passed to The Kids.  The oldest, Doris died somewhere around the age of 60.  The next, Duane didn't make it very much past that.  Janice was almost 68.  No one expected her heart to last this long.  I must admit it, I feel guilty that I never spent much time with any of them.  I guess it doesn't really matter a lot because they had ample friends and family.  My sweet little cousin was able to spend her last few days at home, surrounded by those who loved her very much.  I guess none of us can ask for more than that.