Wilson, Janice Jan Wilson, 86, of St. Paul finished her life's journey on October 16 in her apartment in St. Paul, MN. Jan had mixed dementias, but her kind and giving personality shone through to the end, as she was loved and appreciated by all she contacted, even at the end of life. She passed away surrounded by her children, grandchildren and family who had gathered around her, just as she would have wished. A celebration of Jan's life will be held at Mayflower, UCC, 106 E. Diamond Lake Rd., Minneapolis, MN at 4 p.m. Saturday, November 25. Light reception following the service. Jan is survived by her children, Margaret Wilson of Opheim, MT, sister Mary Pierre Jean Wilson of Edinburgh, Scotland, David (Nancy) Wilson of Bloomington, MN and Kay (John) Hatlestad of Maplewood, MN; her grandchildren Karen and Mark Hatlestad and Alex and Andrew Wilson, her brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Tom and Dolores Wilson of Napa, CA, as well as numerous cousins. Jan loved travel and family. She frequently travelled with family members, visiting friends and family around the world. She regularly collected the whole family for trips. She was preceded in death by her first husband, Curt Wilson, her brother Bobby McGladrey and her parents, Lyle and Margaret McGladrey. She was also preceded in death by her second husband, Bruce Larson. Jan was born in Minneapolis on September 19, 1930 to Lyle and Margaret (Link) McGladrey. She lived in St. Paul, Minneapolis, Yellow Springs OH, Chicago IL and Cloquet as a child. She married Curtis M. Wilson in Minneapolis on September 6, 1952, two days after her graduation as a BS Registered Nurse from the University of Minnesota. They lived in Wisconsin, New Jersey, Illinois, New York and England, but Jan spent most of her life in Urbana, IL. Jan earned a MS in Public Health from the University of Illinois and was a school nurse in the Urbana, IL school district for many years. She returned to Minnesota a few years ago to be close to family. Jan had a strong commitment to advocacy, service and philanthropy. Jan's brother Bobby was born with Down's syndrome, but her parents refused to accept the usual practice of institutionalizing their son and were instrumental in setting up the first ever group housing for the developmentally disabled in Cloquet. Jan continued this tradition of advocacy, volunteering in a variety of charitable organizations even while raising her four children, working, and earning her Master's degree. She was a pioneer in teaching and supporting teen mothers in Urbana. Jan was a stalwart member of Community United Church of Christ in Champaign, Illinois. She supported and engaged at a very personal level with organizations in hunger, education, the environment, homelessness and domestic abuse. Jan was also a model for engaging in life. She started running 10Ks in her 50's after her children left the house, knit dozens of Icelandic sweaters for friends and family, and maintained connections with a wide variety of friends and family. She and Curt took the family camping even when her youngest kids were in (cloth) diapers, and the family still fondly remembers how she organized us, with each child having an age-appropriate role cooking dinner and setting up the nightly campsites. Jan edited the Langley papers for decades, a newsletter which connected a large branch of her father's family, and was a leader in a round robin letter group that connected her 16 Minnesota nursing classmates for over 65 years. She was ahead of her time in modeling what a strong, capable, abundant woman could accomplish in the wider community. The love that Curt and Jan had for history, cultures and religious studies and social justice led them to host international students for many years at the UI as well as make many international trips to dozens of countries on six continents, including Church World Service mission trips to Chiapas in Mexico and India. Donations may be made to the Crop Walk (Church World Service), Planned Parenthood, or your local public radio station, environmental or social justice group.