Nickname of "JJ" came from her first nephew. When he was young, he couldn't pronounce Janet and would struggle saying "J...J", and thence "JJ" came to be her name to all.
The true definition of "small but mighty" standing at a whopping 5'1", her personality was larger than life. Never one to mince words, but with a sense of humor that could make your stomach hurt from laughing in under 30 minutes, Aunt JJ was truly one of a kind. As an example, her 40th birthday present to herself was to buy a "new, sensible car for a single woman" and came home with a baby blue 1964 Ford Mustang Fastback.
Throughout her life, Aunt JJ maintained a sense of class and elegance about her. Although not shy to jump into the river for a swim, she always dressed to impress and took pride in her outward appearance.
As quirky as they come, Aunt JJ also held the affectionate nickname "Aunt Janet from another planet" from her nieces and nephews. Her wit was unparalleled, and even in the days leading up to her death could think of a sarcastic comeback so funny before you'd even finished your sentence. But most of all, she loved being goofy. Within the family it was a known a "Drinky-Poo" was her signature 7&7 Highball; No Easter was complete without a phone call from her saying "Happy Easter ya Egg Head". As she got older her favorite line was "They say you can't take it with you, so I'm not going." Even when in the nursing home nearing the end of her life, she found another joy in her life- cheeseburgers. She began to request them for lunch and dinner everyday until finally a dietician decided to intervene. However the dieticians lecture on healthy eating was found to be a waste when Aunt JJ's only response was "Honey if your goal was to get a 91 year old to stop eating two cheeseburgers a day and start eating salad and fruit, I've got some bad news coming your way."
Aunt JJ had many constants in her life- she enjoyed singing, dancing, partying, her family- but most significant to her was her love of the water and synchronized swimming. She was immensely proud of her decades of work instructing and working with the YMCA in Downtown Cincinnati. She would leave her "day job" of bookkeeping to head downtown and begin what she loved doing the most. Her call to the water came at a young age, as she loved telling stories of swimming in the Ohio River and as a life guard as a teenager at a local pool during the summers. On that last day of the year before the City drained the pool, she would "forget her watch" at home and let all the kids spend extra hours playing in the water. A lifetime member of Coney Island/Sunlite Pool, Aunt JJ also befriend local television personality Bob Braun in his early years while still a life guard at Coney, and loved telling the story of his amphibious car. (Bob loved to drive people around in the car and approach the Ohio River. As they got closer, he acted as if the brakes on the car went out. When the car hit the water, Bob would engage the "amphibious" portion of the car, and tote people for short cruises along the River, much to everyone's relief.)
Although never having children of her own, Aunt JJ loved on and was loved by her nieces and nephews, great nieces and nephews, and great-great niece. Her relationship with all of them was something she cherished immensely later in life. A strong woman, Aunt JJ lived life exactly how she wanted to- and unapologetically at that. Shortly after turning 91, it appeared her life would be coming to a close. With family rallying together and final goodbye's being said- Aunt JJ decided she had other plans. The devoted hospice aide who had been faithfully by her side came in one day to find that Aunt JJ had made a miraculous recovery from being quite literally on death's doorstep, and was up playing solitaire in her chair cracking jokes with the Nursing Home staff. She went on to live another happy year, getting to meet her great-great niece and spending more days at Coney Island- and of course eating cheeseburgers before passing peacefully at 92.
____
I cannot think of Aunt JJ without thinking of her and the story of the love of her life. One of the most memorable and significant parts of her youth has to be the day she met the love of her life, Clifford J. "CJ" Smith, in 1936. While walking around the East End of Cincinnati one day with some of her friends, a group of boys from Mt. Adams had come down- one of them being CJ. From that first moment until the day CJ passed away (and even then after), they were in love.
Continuing their romance during WWII, Aunt JJ remembered waiting anxiously for CJ to come home, but cherishing every letter. When he finally did come home, JJ was at work, and there was a miscommunication within the families on how they would all celebrate his return. JJ came home having no idea CJ had returned safely to a house full of both families, and immediately assumed the worst. Within moments of hearing her distress, Cliff, who had been waiting behind a door, appeared and said "If you worry this much about me when we're dating I'm almost afraid to ask you to marry me." And their engagement began.
During their long engagement, the Korean War broke out. Feeling the need to serve his country once again, Cliff left to serve. Upon his safe arrival, they reiterated their love and engagement, and their life continued. Unfortunately, another engagement stretching into years, and another war (Vietnam) that Cliff bravely and proudly served his country in, put a temporary wedge between the two. Breaking off their relationship, Janet went on to marry someone else.
However that marriage was not meant to last, and after divorcing, Aunt JJ and Cliff, who never stopped talking and remaining friends, rekindled their relationship, this time for the remainder of their lives. They went on to live happily together, and sharing a mutual love of the water, maintained their residence on Straight Creek in Ohio as well as Kissimmee, FL. They traveled all over the United States together making countless friends along the way. Additionally they spent significant amounts of time out on Native American land, and together supported schools and Churches that assisted the Lakota (Sioux), Crow, and Northern Cheyenne children.
Their love story ended after 79 years with Cliff's passing in May 2015, with Cliff's final request to the family being "Take good care of my girl."
The true definition of "small but mighty" standing at a whopping 5'1", her personality was larger than life. Never one to mince words, but with a sense of humor that could make your stomach hurt from laughing in under 30 minutes, Aunt JJ was truly one of a kind. As an example, her 40th birthday present to herself was to buy a "new, sensible car for a single woman" and came home with a baby blue 1964 Ford Mustang Fastback.
Throughout her life, Aunt JJ maintained a sense of class and elegance about her. Although not shy to jump into the river for a swim, she always dressed to impress and took pride in her outward appearance.
As quirky as they come, Aunt JJ also held the affectionate nickname "Aunt Janet from another planet" from her nieces and nephews. Her wit was unparalleled, and even in the days leading up to her death could think of a sarcastic comeback so funny before you'd even finished your sentence. But most of all, she loved being goofy. Within the family it was a known a "Drinky-Poo" was her signature 7&7 Highball; No Easter was complete without a phone call from her saying "Happy Easter ya Egg Head". As she got older her favorite line was "They say you can't take it with you, so I'm not going." Even when in the nursing home nearing the end of her life, she found another joy in her life- cheeseburgers. She began to request them for lunch and dinner everyday until finally a dietician decided to intervene. However the dieticians lecture on healthy eating was found to be a waste when Aunt JJ's only response was "Honey if your goal was to get a 91 year old to stop eating two cheeseburgers a day and start eating salad and fruit, I've got some bad news coming your way."
Aunt JJ had many constants in her life- she enjoyed singing, dancing, partying, her family- but most significant to her was her love of the water and synchronized swimming. She was immensely proud of her decades of work instructing and working with the YMCA in Downtown Cincinnati. She would leave her "day job" of bookkeeping to head downtown and begin what she loved doing the most. Her call to the water came at a young age, as she loved telling stories of swimming in the Ohio River and as a life guard as a teenager at a local pool during the summers. On that last day of the year before the City drained the pool, she would "forget her watch" at home and let all the kids spend extra hours playing in the water. A lifetime member of Coney Island/Sunlite Pool, Aunt JJ also befriend local television personality Bob Braun in his early years while still a life guard at Coney, and loved telling the story of his amphibious car. (Bob loved to drive people around in the car and approach the Ohio River. As they got closer, he acted as if the brakes on the car went out. When the car hit the water, Bob would engage the "amphibious" portion of the car, and tote people for short cruises along the River, much to everyone's relief.)
Although never having children of her own, Aunt JJ loved on and was loved by her nieces and nephews, great nieces and nephews, and great-great niece. Her relationship with all of them was something she cherished immensely later in life. A strong woman, Aunt JJ lived life exactly how she wanted to- and unapologetically at that. Shortly after turning 91, it appeared her life would be coming to a close. With family rallying together and final goodbye's being said- Aunt JJ decided she had other plans. The devoted hospice aide who had been faithfully by her side came in one day to find that Aunt JJ had made a miraculous recovery from being quite literally on death's doorstep, and was up playing solitaire in her chair cracking jokes with the Nursing Home staff. She went on to live another happy year, getting to meet her great-great niece and spending more days at Coney Island- and of course eating cheeseburgers before passing peacefully at 92.
____
I cannot think of Aunt JJ without thinking of her and the story of the love of her life. One of the most memorable and significant parts of her youth has to be the day she met the love of her life, Clifford J. "CJ" Smith, in 1936. While walking around the East End of Cincinnati one day with some of her friends, a group of boys from Mt. Adams had come down- one of them being CJ. From that first moment until the day CJ passed away (and even then after), they were in love.
Continuing their romance during WWII, Aunt JJ remembered waiting anxiously for CJ to come home, but cherishing every letter. When he finally did come home, JJ was at work, and there was a miscommunication within the families on how they would all celebrate his return. JJ came home having no idea CJ had returned safely to a house full of both families, and immediately assumed the worst. Within moments of hearing her distress, Cliff, who had been waiting behind a door, appeared and said "If you worry this much about me when we're dating I'm almost afraid to ask you to marry me." And their engagement began.
During their long engagement, the Korean War broke out. Feeling the need to serve his country once again, Cliff left to serve. Upon his safe arrival, they reiterated their love and engagement, and their life continued. Unfortunately, another engagement stretching into years, and another war (Vietnam) that Cliff bravely and proudly served his country in, put a temporary wedge between the two. Breaking off their relationship, Janet went on to marry someone else.
However that marriage was not meant to last, and after divorcing, Aunt JJ and Cliff, who never stopped talking and remaining friends, rekindled their relationship, this time for the remainder of their lives. They went on to live happily together, and sharing a mutual love of the water, maintained their residence on Straight Creek in Ohio as well as Kissimmee, FL. They traveled all over the United States together making countless friends along the way. Additionally they spent significant amounts of time out on Native American land, and together supported schools and Churches that assisted the Lakota (Sioux), Crow, and Northern Cheyenne children.
Their love story ended after 79 years with Cliff's passing in May 2015, with Cliff's final request to the family being "Take good care of my girl."
Nickname of "JJ" came from her first nephew. When he was young, he couldn't pronounce Janet and would struggle saying "J...J", and thence "JJ" came to be her name to all.
The true definition of "small but mighty" standing at a whopping 5'1", her personality was larger than life. Never one to mince words, but with a sense of humor that could make your stomach hurt from laughing in under 30 minutes, Aunt JJ was truly one of a kind. As an example, her 40th birthday present to herself was to buy a "new, sensible car for a single woman" and came home with a baby blue 1964 Ford Mustang Fastback.
Throughout her life, Aunt JJ maintained a sense of class and elegance about her. Although not shy to jump into the river for a swim, she always dressed to impress and took pride in her outward appearance.
As quirky as they come, Aunt JJ also held the affectionate nickname "Aunt Janet from another planet" from her nieces and nephews. Her wit was unparalleled, and even in the days leading up to her death could think of a sarcastic comeback so funny before you'd even finished your sentence. But most of all, she loved being goofy. Within the family it was a known a "Drinky-Poo" was her signature 7&7 Highball; No Easter was complete without a phone call from her saying "Happy Easter ya Egg Head". As she got older her favorite line was "They say you can't take it with you, so I'm not going." Even when in the nursing home nearing the end of her life, she found another joy in her life- cheeseburgers. She began to request them for lunch and dinner everyday until finally a dietician decided to intervene. However the dieticians lecture on healthy eating was found to be a waste when Aunt JJ's only response was "Honey if your goal was to get a 91 year old to stop eating two cheeseburgers a day and start eating salad and fruit, I've got some bad news coming your way."
Aunt JJ had many constants in her life- she enjoyed singing, dancing, partying, her family- but most significant to her was her love of the water and synchronized swimming. She was immensely proud of her decades of work instructing and working with the YMCA in Downtown Cincinnati. She would leave her "day job" of bookkeeping to head downtown and begin what she loved doing the most. Her call to the water came at a young age, as she loved telling stories of swimming in the Ohio River and as a life guard as a teenager at a local pool during the summers. On that last day of the year before the City drained the pool, she would "forget her watch" at home and let all the kids spend extra hours playing in the water. A lifetime member of Coney Island/Sunlite Pool, Aunt JJ also befriend local television personality Bob Braun in his early years while still a life guard at Coney, and loved telling the story of his amphibious car. (Bob loved to drive people around in the car and approach the Ohio River. As they got closer, he acted as if the brakes on the car went out. When the car hit the water, Bob would engage the "amphibious" portion of the car, and tote people for short cruises along the River, much to everyone's relief.)
Although never having children of her own, Aunt JJ loved on and was loved by her nieces and nephews, great nieces and nephews, and great-great niece. Her relationship with all of them was something she cherished immensely later in life. A strong woman, Aunt JJ lived life exactly how she wanted to- and unapologetically at that. Shortly after turning 91, it appeared her life would be coming to a close. With family rallying together and final goodbye's being said- Aunt JJ decided she had other plans. The devoted hospice aide who had been faithfully by her side came in one day to find that Aunt JJ had made a miraculous recovery from being quite literally on death's doorstep, and was up playing solitaire in her chair cracking jokes with the Nursing Home staff. She went on to live another happy year, getting to meet her great-great niece and spending more days at Coney Island- and of course eating cheeseburgers before passing peacefully at 92.
____
I cannot think of Aunt JJ without thinking of her and the story of the love of her life. One of the most memorable and significant parts of her youth has to be the day she met the love of her life, Clifford J. "CJ" Smith, in 1936. While walking around the East End of Cincinnati one day with some of her friends, a group of boys from Mt. Adams had come down- one of them being CJ. From that first moment until the day CJ passed away (and even then after), they were in love.
Continuing their romance during WWII, Aunt JJ remembered waiting anxiously for CJ to come home, but cherishing every letter. When he finally did come home, JJ was at work, and there was a miscommunication within the families on how they would all celebrate his return. JJ came home having no idea CJ had returned safely to a house full of both families, and immediately assumed the worst. Within moments of hearing her distress, Cliff, who had been waiting behind a door, appeared and said "If you worry this much about me when we're dating I'm almost afraid to ask you to marry me." And their engagement began.
During their long engagement, the Korean War broke out. Feeling the need to serve his country once again, Cliff left to serve. Upon his safe arrival, they reiterated their love and engagement, and their life continued. Unfortunately, another engagement stretching into years, and another war (Vietnam) that Cliff bravely and proudly served his country in, put a temporary wedge between the two. Breaking off their relationship, Janet went on to marry someone else.
However that marriage was not meant to last, and after divorcing, Aunt JJ and Cliff, who never stopped talking and remaining friends, rekindled their relationship, this time for the remainder of their lives. They went on to live happily together, and sharing a mutual love of the water, maintained their residence on Straight Creek in Ohio as well as Kissimmee, FL. They traveled all over the United States together making countless friends along the way. Additionally they spent significant amounts of time out on Native American land, and together supported schools and Churches that assisted the Lakota (Sioux), Crow, and Northern Cheyenne children.
Their love story ended after 79 years with Cliff's passing in May 2015, with Cliff's final request to the family being "Take good care of my girl."
The true definition of "small but mighty" standing at a whopping 5'1", her personality was larger than life. Never one to mince words, but with a sense of humor that could make your stomach hurt from laughing in under 30 minutes, Aunt JJ was truly one of a kind. As an example, her 40th birthday present to herself was to buy a "new, sensible car for a single woman" and came home with a baby blue 1964 Ford Mustang Fastback.
Throughout her life, Aunt JJ maintained a sense of class and elegance about her. Although not shy to jump into the river for a swim, she always dressed to impress and took pride in her outward appearance.
As quirky as they come, Aunt JJ also held the affectionate nickname "Aunt Janet from another planet" from her nieces and nephews. Her wit was unparalleled, and even in the days leading up to her death could think of a sarcastic comeback so funny before you'd even finished your sentence. But most of all, she loved being goofy. Within the family it was a known a "Drinky-Poo" was her signature 7&7 Highball; No Easter was complete without a phone call from her saying "Happy Easter ya Egg Head". As she got older her favorite line was "They say you can't take it with you, so I'm not going." Even when in the nursing home nearing the end of her life, she found another joy in her life- cheeseburgers. She began to request them for lunch and dinner everyday until finally a dietician decided to intervene. However the dieticians lecture on healthy eating was found to be a waste when Aunt JJ's only response was "Honey if your goal was to get a 91 year old to stop eating two cheeseburgers a day and start eating salad and fruit, I've got some bad news coming your way."
Aunt JJ had many constants in her life- she enjoyed singing, dancing, partying, her family- but most significant to her was her love of the water and synchronized swimming. She was immensely proud of her decades of work instructing and working with the YMCA in Downtown Cincinnati. She would leave her "day job" of bookkeeping to head downtown and begin what she loved doing the most. Her call to the water came at a young age, as she loved telling stories of swimming in the Ohio River and as a life guard as a teenager at a local pool during the summers. On that last day of the year before the City drained the pool, she would "forget her watch" at home and let all the kids spend extra hours playing in the water. A lifetime member of Coney Island/Sunlite Pool, Aunt JJ also befriend local television personality Bob Braun in his early years while still a life guard at Coney, and loved telling the story of his amphibious car. (Bob loved to drive people around in the car and approach the Ohio River. As they got closer, he acted as if the brakes on the car went out. When the car hit the water, Bob would engage the "amphibious" portion of the car, and tote people for short cruises along the River, much to everyone's relief.)
Although never having children of her own, Aunt JJ loved on and was loved by her nieces and nephews, great nieces and nephews, and great-great niece. Her relationship with all of them was something she cherished immensely later in life. A strong woman, Aunt JJ lived life exactly how she wanted to- and unapologetically at that. Shortly after turning 91, it appeared her life would be coming to a close. With family rallying together and final goodbye's being said- Aunt JJ decided she had other plans. The devoted hospice aide who had been faithfully by her side came in one day to find that Aunt JJ had made a miraculous recovery from being quite literally on death's doorstep, and was up playing solitaire in her chair cracking jokes with the Nursing Home staff. She went on to live another happy year, getting to meet her great-great niece and spending more days at Coney Island- and of course eating cheeseburgers before passing peacefully at 92.
____
I cannot think of Aunt JJ without thinking of her and the story of the love of her life. One of the most memorable and significant parts of her youth has to be the day she met the love of her life, Clifford J. "CJ" Smith, in 1936. While walking around the East End of Cincinnati one day with some of her friends, a group of boys from Mt. Adams had come down- one of them being CJ. From that first moment until the day CJ passed away (and even then after), they were in love.
Continuing their romance during WWII, Aunt JJ remembered waiting anxiously for CJ to come home, but cherishing every letter. When he finally did come home, JJ was at work, and there was a miscommunication within the families on how they would all celebrate his return. JJ came home having no idea CJ had returned safely to a house full of both families, and immediately assumed the worst. Within moments of hearing her distress, Cliff, who had been waiting behind a door, appeared and said "If you worry this much about me when we're dating I'm almost afraid to ask you to marry me." And their engagement began.
During their long engagement, the Korean War broke out. Feeling the need to serve his country once again, Cliff left to serve. Upon his safe arrival, they reiterated their love and engagement, and their life continued. Unfortunately, another engagement stretching into years, and another war (Vietnam) that Cliff bravely and proudly served his country in, put a temporary wedge between the two. Breaking off their relationship, Janet went on to marry someone else.
However that marriage was not meant to last, and after divorcing, Aunt JJ and Cliff, who never stopped talking and remaining friends, rekindled their relationship, this time for the remainder of their lives. They went on to live happily together, and sharing a mutual love of the water, maintained their residence on Straight Creek in Ohio as well as Kissimmee, FL. They traveled all over the United States together making countless friends along the way. Additionally they spent significant amounts of time out on Native American land, and together supported schools and Churches that assisted the Lakota (Sioux), Crow, and Northern Cheyenne children.
Their love story ended after 79 years with Cliff's passing in May 2015, with Cliff's final request to the family being "Take good care of my girl."
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