Early October 27, 2016, Janet Ione Wolter passed away at Mayers Memorial Hospital, joining her husband Jim E. Wolter in heaven on their wedding anniversary. While her death is a great loss to those who crossed her path, it is comforting to imagine her now walking, dancing, gardening, swimming, riding her horse, petting her dog, making bread, and reuniting with loved ones in paradise. After nearly 13 years of being partially paralyzed as a result of a stroke, Janet is free at last.

Janet was born on February 13, 1927, in Oakland, CA to parents Edwin J. “Chuck” and Grace M. Larson and sister Mardy. The family had migrated to California from Duluth, Minnesota in 1925. For most of her childhood she grew up in the Oakland Hills and graduated from Oakland High School in 1945. As part of our nation’s “Greatest Generation,” Janet witnessed firsthand some of history’s most talked about events. However, some of her fondest memories centered around an area known as Coon Creek near Auburn, CA where her family spent many summers beginning during the Great Depression. Dressed in bathing suits under jeans, and having eaten a wood-stove-cooked breakfast to fuel an entire day exploring open country by horseback, along with six other “local” kids who also adored swimming, singing, fishing and playing in and around Coon Creek, was how the Larson girls spent Janet’s favorite childhood days. It was during this time that Janet’s love of “country living” was sparked as she helped care for goats, cattle, chickens and a family garden on the Goodridge Ranch.

As a young woman, Janet worked as a ticket agent for a start-up airline, Southwest Airways, which served 9 cities from San Diego to Medford, Oregon. She later worked at the Olson-Nolte Saddlery, which sold fine bits, spurs, saddles and horse gear produced in San Francisco’s “Butcher- Town”. Janet met more life-long friends as she attended U.C. Davis, which is where she met the love of her life, Jim Wolter.

On October 27, 1950 Jim and Janet eloped to Reno, Nevada. For the next decade, they lived in Carmel Valley until they set out for Nevada County, where they eventually purchased 10 acres between Auburn and Grass Valley, suited for accommodating a few horses, a milk cow and livestock projects for their kids.

As the mother of four children Janet was committed to providing a stable, yet fun, rural upbringing featuring 4-H and FFA membership, as well as opportunities to participate in local horse-related events, youth rodeos and jackpot roping and county fairs. She served as a board member for the Nevada County Fair and was a founding member of the Nevada County Agricultural Youth Boosters Club. A cabin on Lake Combie near Grass Valley, where Janet’s and Mardy’s parents spent their retirement, provided the venue for countless hours of swimming, boating, and gathering of family and friends around good food and sometimes a bonfire with campfire songs.

Janet worked as the secretary at the Pleasant Ridge Elementary School for many years, and partnered with Jim on a cattle, hog and sheep operation near Grass Valley, from 1977 until their retirement in 1999. It was then that Jim and Janet began their next adventure by moving to Ash Valley, in Lassen County, to live out their “golden years.” In 2004, following her stroke, they moved into their cherished home in Adin. In 2011 they moved for the final time, together, into the Skilled Nursing Facility of Mayer’s Memorial Hospital, in Fall River Mills, CA.

While it is impossible to adequately capture her life in an obituary, it’s clear that Janet made the most of the hands she was dealt through her nearly 90 years on Earth. Her can-do spirit of strength, perseverance, and quiet toughness through challenges she faced will live on in the hearts of all she met along her journey in life. Her legacy of love for her family, good humor, being a good sport, her love of the outdoors and creating things from scratch will live on through her children: Kathy (Tom) DeForest of Adin, CA, Joe (Jimmie) Wolter of Aspermont, TX, Matt (Jackie) Wolter of Corning, CA and Sally (Billy) Askew of Carmel Valley, CA. She touched the lives of 12 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren (and 2 on the way), 5 nieces and 3 nephews. She also leaves behind her sister, Mardy Carson of Ashland, OR, cousin, Donald Larson, of Bovey, MN, and dear friends from all across the country. She was preceded in death by her parents and husband, Jim (on Valentine’s Day, 2012).

Friends and family are invited to a celebration of Janet’s life on December 10, 2016, 1pm, at the Adin Community Church, Adin, CA. Random acts of kindness and expressions of gratitude are encouraged to honor Janet’s memory. Memorial contributions may also be made to Mayers Intermountain Healthcare Foundation, PO Box 77, Fall River Mills, CA, 96028 or to the charity of the donor’s choice.