Janet Karen Bauder, wife, mother of four daughters, grandmother or “Grammy” to ten, and cherished friend died Sunday, April 30, 2023, at the age of 79, peacefully with her family by her side.
Janet was born in 1943 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to parents Nicholas Alexander and Pauline Helen Ziebert. She and her parents moved to Green Bay in her early years and that became home. She attended Catholic grade school and St. Joseph’s Academy High School. Her thirst for higher education took her initially to University of Wisconsin, Madison. She later took classes at University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, Northern Michigan University, and Auburn University at Montgomery. She married Kenneth Wayne Bauder in 1964 in Green Bay and their life journey led them to live in many places including Biloxi, MS; Fort Walton Beach, FL; Omaha, NB; Marquette, MI; Montgomery, AL; New Orleans, LA; Lancaster, PA; Jacksonville, FL; Greenville, SC; Fort Smith, AR and Portland, ME. Janet was good at selling and buying homes and eventually took that experience and got her real estate license. She was a very successful, award-winning realtor for 15 years. In 2009 they retired and moved to Cumming, GA to be near family.
Janet leaves behind her husband, Kenneth, her children; Christine R. Frey (Dexter, ME), Stephanie B. McKay (Minneapolis, MN), and Jennifer K. Chaparro (Pittsburgh, PA) along with ten grandchildren. She joins her daughter Cynthia A.B. Nickey (Cumming, GA) in heaven.
Janet’s greatest joy was her children and she loved gathering with family and friends especially for holidays and in particular Christmas. She was a fantastic decorator, hostess, and her attention to detail was second to none. She had a rich patchwork of friendships from all of the states where she lived. She loved to travel, and Janet and her husband had the good fortune of traveling domestically and abroad. A favorite was New York City at Christmas time which always included a visit to Macy’s Santa, seeing the Rockettes perform at Radio City Music Hall, and St. Patrick’s Cathedral to light a candle. Her Catholic faith was strong. With that foundation she lived her life with kindness, grace, and joy. She was a meticulous cleaner and donned the title, “laundry queen”. Janet was a longtime Packer fan, even attending the “Ice Bowl'' with her father. Whether traveling, piddling in the garden, birdwatching, practicing yoga or going on walks she rarely sat still. Even after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease over ten years ago, she never wanted to be sedentary. She kept as active as possible, and her ray of sunshine was when family and friends came to visit.
Her husband of 59 years was dedicated to caring for her and was her tireless advocate until the end. Her light may have been extinguished on this earth, but it shines brightly through her family and friends who will miss her deeply.
A private funeral mass and/or memorial service will be held at a later date.
If you would like to donate to the Alzheimer’s Association in her memory, you may do so at the following link: https://www.alz.org/
We hope that one day there will be a cure for this terrible disease that slowly took her from us. Thank you for your support and generosity.
