Jane Cox Chrisman
November 4, 1953 - May 30, 2016
Jane Cox Chrisman, a lifelong resident of Springfield, Missouri, passed unexpectedly on May 30, 2016 at the tender age of 62. Born November 4, 1953 to John and Doris (Ewing) Cox, she found her feet and her left her mark in Springfield. She attended Missouri State University and received her Bachelor of Science degree in 1977.
She was preceded in death by her mother, Doris, and followed in death by her sister, Terry Flory. She is survived by her dear husband Gene, her father John Cox, a brother John L. Cox of CA, her Golden Retriever, Ed as well as her extensive adopted family of devoted and adoring friends.
Our Jane was a beautiful woman who lived purposefully choosing to sow kindness towards others, seeking perfection in her details and exhibiting tenderness to her four-legged family members as well as her deep love to her husband Gene. She found fascination in this life through her passion in all things artistic as well as her multiple trips to tropical beach destinations. She labored lovingly and patiently anything she found broken – animate and inanimate alike – but friends, she nurtured above all.
Her superior mind worked within a grid and traveled like an amoeba. She was a fascinating spiral of work and play. The explosion of creativity did not stop on a canvas, a piece of glass or metal. She traded barbs with her friends at a lightening pace. Each one of us tried to out-think, out-wit, and out-pun, her. Face it – she usually finished last with a huge smile and ripples of laughter.
Besides the mountains of artwork, some of her accomplishments include forty years at the Mercy Blood Bank, thirty-two years of a loving marriage; multiple trips to Bermuda and Key West; a hundred thousand trips around the neighborhood; main care-giver to both parents; huge shoulder to her siblings, gallery artist and an awarded artist.
These are all remarkable achievements which created the many environments we will remember so fondly. The things we will cherish the most is her friendship, her smile and the very way it would make her eyes sparkle, the way she described things with her hands, and her beautiful balance of structure and abandonment. She laughed genuinely and loved deeply.
She is now in the presence of her Almighty Savior, laughing, loving and being loved in return. She is in His tender cared being told, "Well done my good and faithful servant. You are my chosen and beloved one." She is getting her reward. Ours is to be with her again when we are so called. Until then, may we honor Our Jane by how we live – live well.
A memorial service will be Saturday, June 11 at 10:30am at Messiah Lutheran Church, 925 E Seminole Street, Springfield, Missouri.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations to Smile Train would be greatly appreciated by Jane and her family. Smile Train, P.O. Box 96231, Washington DC, 20090-6231. Donations may be made via phone 800-932-9541. For more information, visit SmileTrain.org.
