Janice Kenyon Gensel

Our Nana, Janice Kenyon Gensel, departed this life on Sunday, July 29, 2018, after 84 full and beautiful years. Her loving husband and three children were at her side.
Janice was born to John and Ella Mae Kenyon on June 6, 1934, in Oakland, Calif., where she attended Berkeley High School. She worked her first job as an usher at the California Theater, where she met a handsome sailor and caught his attention by throwing popcorn for him to catch. That man was our Papa, Richard Britton Gensel. He and Janice were married November 6, 1952, where they began their first of 66 years together in a little upstairs apartment.
Jann and Dick were blessed with a daughter (Gwendolyn) in 1954, followed by two sons (Gregory and Gordon) in 1955 and 1963. They were sealed in the Bern, Switzerland LDS Temple in 1970. The family moved with Dick’s naval career, and spent time living in Pakistan and Belgium as well as several California cities before Jann and Dick retired to Providence, Utah in 2002 to enjoy their precious grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Before retiring, Janice enjoyed various careers, including teaching English in Pakistan and testing childproof containers in local preschool. She loved gardening and fresh flowers, Shirley Temple films, bowling, and laughing with her grandbabies. Nana had special nicknames for all 26 grandchildren, and they will always treasure Nana’s ability to make them feel special and loved.
Nana glazed and fired ceramics in her own kilns for many years, spent countless hours watching golf with Papa, and had a vast collection of rubber stamps for card-making and other crafts. She enjoyed working with the children and youth in various church callings, and especially loved working in the church library with Papa over the last several years.
She instilled a sense of strength, playfulness, and gratitude in all those who have had the privilege to know and love her. Nana was our home and gathering place, and her posterity will carry forward a legacy of supporting and loving one another.
Janice’s family would like to thank Dixie and Paul Clark, Nana’s nurse Chantel, and other caretakers for their attentive care and generosity. They also thank Bishop Rees, Sister King, Al Applegarth, the Sonngtags, Ruth, Kristy, and others from the ward who have ministered to Brother and Sister Gensel.
Though she has now joined her brother, Quane Kenyon, in spirit, Nana will live on in the hearts of her loved ones, including her children Gwen (Dave) Drechsler, Gregg (Kaye) Gensel, and Gordon (Robin) Gensel, along with 12 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.
A viewing will be held Thursday evening from 6:00-8:00 p.m. at Allen-Hall Mortuary, 34 E. Center St. in Logan. Funeral services will be held Friday, August 3, at 12:00 p.m., with a viewing that morning from 10:30-11:30, at the Fox Ridge Ward Church (155 N. 100 E., Providence). A graveside service at the Providence Cemetery (924 River Heights Blvd.) will follow. Condolences may be extended on allenmortuaries.net.
In Nana’s memory, plant a flower, water a plant, and find time to laugh with those you love.