Janet Ellen Hartmann

Date of Birth

Dec 16,1940

Date of Death

Jan 19,2019

Janet Ellen Hartmann, age 78, of Maple Park, passed away in the early morning hours of Saturday, January 19, 2019, surrounded by the love and prayers of her family, following a long battle with COPD.
She was born December 16, 1940, in Sycamore, IL, to loving parents, William and Ruth (Hudson) Holderness.
Janet grew up on the family farm in Malta with her sisters, Betty and Wilma, and her brothers George and John. Her childhood on the farm fostered a true love and compassion for animals. Throughout her life, she always enjoyed the companionship provided by her beloved dogs that rarely left her side.
Janet attended Slade Grade School in Malta, IL, and later attended Malta High School with her siblings. After high school, she attended Northern Illinois University where she earned a master’s degree in Marine Microbiology.
After graduation, Janet went to work for Tony Company in downtown Chicago where she worked in a lab performing quality control tests on the company’s products.
She married her lifelong love and best friend Frank on January 20th, 1973. She moved to the farm where she raised her two boys, Wayne and Dale. Janet was a very resourceful woman. She maintained a large garden that produced vegetables for the family. She took great pride in her ability to can tomatoes and green beans for the winter months. She knew how to sew, knit, and crochet. She was always happy to see the family at meals, often bringing them to the field where the work was going on. Many meals were had on the tailgate of a truck or a hayrack with mason jars full of iced tea or lemonade. She was the book keeper for the farm and drove the occasional tractor during harvest.
As a loving mother, Janet did everything that she could to make sure that her two rambunctious boys grew up strong and successful. She was always there to watch soccer and football games, or endure and all day track meet to watch her son run a 23 second race. She did the often thankless job of driving the boys to and from all of their activities without a single complaint. When it came time to let the boys take the wheel, she was the nervous co-pilot who endured many near catastrophes. Above, all, Janet made sure her boys knew that they were loved unconditionally. Janet enjoyed “seeing the country”. She took several trips with the family to places like Florida, Colorado, Arizona, Alaska and even Hawaii. She enjoyed camping and traveling by car so that she could grasp all that the trip had to offer. Later in life, Janet’s favorite hobby became making ceramics which often depicted the animals that she loved. She shared her craft and love of animals with her grandchildren Aspen, Jack, Isabella and Emma; who will remember her as a kind and gentle Grandma.
Janet is survived by her loving husband of 45 years, Frank Hartmann; two sons: Wayne (Susanna) Hartmann and their children, Aspen, Jack and Isabella, and Dale (Jennifer) Hartmann and their daughter Emma; several nieces, nephews and a community of friends.
She is preceded in death by her sisters: Wilma Getzelman, and Betty Harding, as well as her brother’s John and George Holderness.
Visitation will be Friday, January 25, 2019, from 4-7 p.m. with a funeral service to follow at 7 p.m., at Conley Funeral Home, 116 W. Pierce St., Elburn, IL 60119. Interment will follow on Saturday, January 26, at 10 a.m. at Lily Lake Cemetery, Lily Lake, IL.
In lieu of flowers, a memorial has been established in Janet’s name to benefit her favorite charities. Checks may be made to the “Janet Hartmann Memorial” and mailed in care of P.O. Box 66, Elburn, 60119. Tributes may also be forwarded to the same address, the Conley Funeral Home Facebook Page, or at www.conleycare.com.

Will follow visitation.

Visitation will be Friday, January 25, 2019, from 4-7 p.m. with a funeral service to follow at 7 p.m., at Conley Funeral Home, 116 W. Pierce St., Elburn, IL 60119.

Interment will follow on Saturday, January 26, at 10 a.m. at Lily Lake Cemetery, Lily Lake, IL.

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