Mrs. Janet E. Oswain

Mrs. Janet Elizabeth (Loewen) Oswain, 84, a longtime resident of Pittsfield, died Wednesday afternoon, August 20, 2014, at Trinity Health Center in Woonsocket, RI. She was born in Bronx, NY on May 22, 1930, a daughter of the late Frederick and Ella (Newman) Loewen. She graduated from St. Thomas Aquinas School, and then from Walton High School in 1948. She earned both her Bachelor and Master of Arts Degrees from Hunter College. She had been a resident of Pittsfield since 1968. Mrs. Oswain was an elementary school teacher in the Pittsfield Public Schools from 1970 until retiring in 1990. Earlier, she had spent two years working for the US Department of Defense as a teacher in Spain. She had been a communicant of St. Charles Church in Pittsfield. She enjoyed teaching and reading, and had a deep love for gardening, and for animals and her pets. She liked to travel around the world to experience other cultures, and was fluent in both German and Spanish. Her family meant everything to her, and her greatest love was spending much time with her family. Her husband, Harold T. Oswain, whom she married on November 9, 1957, died on April 7, 2013. She is survived by her son, John F. Oswain and his wife, Sheila, of Cheshire; her daughter, Karen Oswain, and her husband, Thomas Cabana, of Cumberland, RI; a brother, Fred Loewen of Wisconsin; 2 sisters, Hilda "Ronnie" Coords of New York, and Elizabeth Corrado of Pennsylvania; 7 grandchildren, Meghan and Sean Oswain; Keeley Murphy and William Murphy III; and Nathan, Joseph and Crystal Cabana; 2 great grandchildren, Lola and Jax; as well as several nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews. Funeral services will be held on Wednesday, August 27th, with a Liturgy of Christian Burial celebrated at 10:30 AM in the Church of the Holy Trinity, 775 Main St. Poughkeepsie, NY. Burial will follow in Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery. Calling hours in the PACIOREK FUNERAL HOME, 13 Hoosac St. Adams, MA will be Tuesday from 4 to 7 PM. Memorial donations may be made to the Wounded Knee District School, Attn: Principal Alice Phelps, PO Box 350, Manderson, S.D. 57756. To leave a message of condolence, please go online to www.paciorekfuneral.com

Mrs. Janet E. Oswain

May 22, 1930 - August 20, 2014