Jan Eileen Jahnke

Janyth Eileen (Miller) Jahnke was born on April 28, 1940, in Sac City, Iowa, to Elwood and Wilma (Stokes) Miller and passed away on November 23, 2022, in Alexandria, Minnesota, at the age of 82 years. Shortly after her birth, her father purchased a farm outside of Waltham, Minnesota. Jan attended country school and graduated from Blooming Prairie High School in 1958. She went on to graduate from Minnesota State University - Mankato, with her degree in education majoring in social studies and minoring in English.   She completed her Master’s in Education from the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities.

In 1960 “Jan and Dean” were married and settled into a teaching life in the Robbinsdale area. She loved teaching and her students in the Osseo School District. American History and Government were her favorite classes to teach. Teaching helped her recall some answers on her favorite quiz show, “Jeopardy”. One unspoken rule was never call between 4:30-5:00 pm when Jeopardy was on TV!

Jan and Dean retired together. Dean finished building their retirement home on Lake Ida where friends and family gathered. An annual tradition was the family “Christmas in July” where everyone gathered for fun family times. Jan and Dean enjoyed traveling to all 50 states and many foreign countries. They loved Florida and spent more than 20 years wintering, golfing, and spending time with their friends. After Jan’s youngest granddaughter was confirmed this fall, Jan shared how proud she was to have seen all of her grandchildren get baptized and confirmed.

Jan is survived by her three children, Beth (Eric) Henningsen of White Bear Lake, Brenda (Sean) Martens of Apple Valley, and Dan (Tammy) Jahnke of Alexandria; ten grandchildren, Eva Henningsen of Canberra, AUS, Connor Henningsen of White Bear Lake, Devin (Megan) Martens of Minneapolis, Zachary (Sarah) Martens of Mankato, Madeline Martens of Sheboygan, Wisconsin, Luke Martens of Winona, Ariel Kimbrough of Hopkins, Alea (Zach) Peterson of Elbow Lake, Jackson Jahnke of Alexandria, Brooke Jahnke of Alexandria; and five great grandchildren. They were the joy of her life.

A memorial service will be held on Wednesday, November 30, 2022, at 2:30 p.m. with a visitation from 1:00-2:30 p.m. at the Anderson Funeral Home, Alexandria, Minnesota.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Ida Lake Association (Alexandria, MN), Runestone Museum Foundation (Alexandria, MN), Shalom Lutheran Church (Alexandria, MN), Joy Lutheran Church (Palm Bay, FL), or donor's choice.