Janice Ellen Doench

When the kids say, "OK, Boomer", they weren't talking about Jan. Her sharp mind and wry sense of humor would keep you on your toes in the best possible way. Her loving heart never had you doubting how much she cared.

Janice Ellen Doench (née Brinkman) was born on a balmy spring day, April 18th, 1946 in Springfield, Ohio to Everett Brinkman and Cordia Brinkman (née McClary), the 11th of 12 children. Their house, on Old National Road in Harmony, Ohio sat right next to the family ice cream shop. Her siblings called her “Doc” as she read through every book in the local library, but you wouldn't be wrong if you assumed Nana was her favorite moniker.

She met Douglas Doench at WZIP in Portsmouth, Ohio where she was doing commercial voice-over work. They were married in May 1968, until his death in 1999. She never remarried.

She was the loving mother of nine children: Kris, Lou (Naomi), Tony (Abby), Jessica (Frank), Jon (Aimee), Cordia (David), Katy, Bill (Sarah), and Andrew (Amanda).

She was the absolute best Nana to: Jason, Sarah, Juliana, Abby, Liam, Emmy, Carolina, Davy, Linus, Anya, Isaac, Asher, Gabe, Nadia, and Conrad. And Jan was excited to be a brand new great-Nana to Oliver this past Christmas.

Jan was an avid quilter and was a member of the River City Quilters Guild and Stash Pot Pie. For many years, she, along with her daughter Jessica, owned Best Friends Quilt Shoppe, a Cincinnati quilting staple. Through patient teaching, mystery quilts and Olfa Cutter stories, she shared her passion for quilting, crafting, and creativity.

With a sharp mind and sense of wordplay, her Scrabble game was legendary; now maybe the rest of us will finally have a chance to win.

Jan was absolutely beloved and her family and friends will miss her dearly. But, as a line from one of her favorite movies states, "My mother always used to say, 'When life hands you potatoes, make potato salad.'" So, we'll just have to make potato salad.

Janice passed away on Thursday April 6, 2023 at the age of 76.

Visitation will be held at Hodapp Funeral Home, 6041 Hamilton Avenue, College Hill, 45224 on Wednesday, April 12, 2023 from 11:00 until Funeral Service at 12 noon.