Jean Whiting Obituary

Jean Stewart (Wilson) Whiting departed this life in peace and comfort on Monday, March 3, 2008, at Solvay Hospice House in Duluth. Jean was born in Minneapolis, on April 18, 1920, to Roland and Edith Wilson of Elk River, Minn. She attended Elk River High School and was graduated from Carleton College, Northfield, Minn. in 1942. On July 7, 1942, she was married to Lt. James G. Whiting of Mapleton, Iowa. They resided for a short time in Baltimore, Ohio, prior to James' deployment overseas. Following the war, they moved to Mapleton, Iowa where they made their home. In 1973, they moved to Lake Shore, Minn. Several years after James' death, she was married to Joseph B. 'Barney' Johnson of Duluth, where she lived until her death. During her life, Jean pursued many interests including travel, reading, nature and volunteer work. Her family, however, was always her primary and constant joy. She was a longtime member of the P.E.O. sisterhood. She served on the Board of Directors of Mapleton Trust & Savings Bank (Mapleton, Iowa), Farmers Savings Bank (Danbury, Iowa) and Nisswa State Bank (Nisswa, Minn.). From 1988 to 2006, she was chairman of the Board of Valley Bancshares, Inc. of Nisswa, Minn. Most recently she was instrumental in helping the Miller-Dwan Foundation create the Solvay Hospice House, a place of dignity, comfort and peace where terminally ill people may pass in the company of friends and family. There, she spent her last days encircled in her family's love. She was preceded in death by her parents; her first husband, James G. Whiting; her second husband, Joseph B. Johnson and her sister, Margaret L. Bubb. She is survived by her brother, Thomas K. Wilson of Naples, Fla.; her children, Sue H. Ragan (Charles) of Ely, Minn., James T. Whiting (Diane) of Lake Shore, Minn., and Craig W. Whiting (Julie) of Lake Shore, Minn.; six grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. Her family wishes to extend sincere gratitude for the loving care and graceful attention provided by the staff of Solvay Hospice House. FUNERAL SERVICE:11 a.m. Thursday, March, 6, in St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 1710 East Superior Street, Duluth. Interment will be at the Mount Hope Cemetery in Mapleton, Iowa. It was her wish that memorials be directed to the Miller-Dwan Foundation for the Solvay Hospice House.
This obituary was originally published in the Duluth News Tribune.