Jennifer Lee (Lamb) Calangi passed peacefully at her family’s home in Liberty Township, OH on Saturday, October 9, 2021, at 11:15 p.m. after a two-and-a-half year long battle with cholangiocarcinoma. She went to be with her Lord at 64 years of age, surrounded by family who love her.
Jennifer is survived by her loving husband of 34 years, Felixberto (Sonny) Calangi, three sons – Zachary (Jena) Calangi (32) of Liberty Township, OH, Nicholas (Emily Anne) Calangi (31) of Dumfries, VA, and Logan (Brooke Heidewald) Calangi (26) of Columbus, OH; five grandchildren – Peter (13), Helena Jade (8), Selena (7), Eleanor (18 mos.), and Marcus (due in December); sister Pamela (Gary) Lamb-Hart of Cardington, OH, step-sister Tammy Black of Huntington, WV, stepbrothers Mike (Debbie) Conley of Huntington and Jim (Amy) Conley of FL, dear step-mother Mary Lamb of Huntington; sisters and brothers in law Maria Annunciation “Nuncy” Angeles of Chicago, IL, Jesus “Jesse” (Digna) Calangi, Joseph “Joey” (Loures) Calangi, and Seraphin “Ces” (Titcho) Calangi. She had a special relationship with niece Emilee (Kaleb) Irey, nephew Garrett Lamb-Hart and little Ezri Irey as well as Jena’s parents Robert “Jojo” and Ever Raymundo. She is also survived by other nieces, nephews, extended relatives, dear friends, colleagues she considered her work family, and Janice Steirn and Georgann Holbrook – best friends since Cammack Jr. High School.
She is preceded in death by her parents Richard Lee and Shirley Lee (Burton) Lamb, grandmothers Dorothy Lee Talbott Lewis and Janet Puryear Lamb, grandfathers Joseph Fairfax Lewis, Robert Lamb, and Virgil Burton, great aunt and uncle Stella and Corbett Cauliflower, brother-in-law Oscar Angeles, and her sweet little dog Toby.
Jennifer was born on July 26, 1957, in Huntington, WV. She graduated from Huntington High School in 1975, received her B.A. in Secondary Education (English and Speech) from Marshall University in 1979 and her A.S.N. degree from Marshall University School of Nursing in 1983. She also completed her B.S.N. from Miami University in 1989.
Jennifer was known for having a strong work ethic throughout her life. She began working as an aid in the physical therapy department at Saint Mary’s Hospital in Huntington, WV. After becoming a nurse, she worked at Mercy North Hospital as a medical-surgical nurse in intensive care; at Fort Hamilton Hughes Memorial Hospital in Hamilton, OH; and, as a home health nurse for GEM City. In most recent years, she worked the night shift at the Lindner Center of Hope in Hamilton. She specialized in psychiatric nursing, giving her all to patients needing mental health support. She also taught nursing courses in recent years.
Jennifer was an enthusiastic and motivated professional with a reputation for leadership, effective interpersonal skills, integrity, and high standards. Her family and friends are familiar with her knack for expletive language when necessary to reflect her feelings.
Jennifer will be remembered for her good humor and personality, joke telling, contagious laughter, and ability to make anyone around her comfortable with her inviting conversations. She was always interested in what was going on in the lives of others and made each person she was with feel important. She was a good cook, enjoyed shopping, loved a good bargain, created a beautiful home for her family and was a supportive wife, caring mother, and loved her grandchildren beyond measure—they were the light of her world!
Jennifer’s faith was very important to her. She converted to Roman Catholicism as a teenager. She prayed earnestly about giving her life in service to God by becoming a nun—she even spent a summer in an Abbey in West Virginia in exploration of this calling. God changed these plans using her priest to introduce her and Sonny Calangi to one another. He was a handsome young man, new to the United States and a sacristan at Jennifer’s church (Saint Joseph’s in Huntington, WV – she was a lector [reader] there). They had a pizza date after a church service and have been together ever since!
Jennifer overcame both ovarian and breast cancer and most recently battled bile duct cancer in her liver. She fought so hard – a true warrior! – and she prayed for a miracle. She lived two years longer than medical science indicated possible. She continued to work through chemotherapy and radiation treatments, only stopping a short time ago. She fought for more time with her precious family but also accepted that more time on earth was not God’s plan for her.
If Jennifer were here, she would thank Dr. Lang, her oncologist for over 10 years, for his medical treatment, kindness, and friendship. She would thank her friends and colleagues for their love and support. She would also thank her faith community and the Filipino community for their prayers. Her family would like to thank Jody from GEM City Home Health and an amazing team of angels from ProMedica (Heartland) Hospice - including Heather, Nora, Cheryl, Melissa, Layla and Kendra - who helped to make her comfortable in recent weeks. Finally, Jennifer’s family would like to thank everyone who loved Jennifer – thank you for loving her! She loved you too (and still does!).
1 Timothy 4:7 seems so fitting for Jennifer’s journey: “I have fought the good fight. I have ended the race. I have kept the faith.” That she truly did! She praised God with every ounce of her being and now fully understands the reward waiting for her at the end of her earthly race.
Please join us in remembering and celebrating the life of our beloved Jennifer Calangi this upcoming Sunday (funeral home visitation) and Monday (church visitation/Mass/funeral):
Sunday, October 17th
• Rose Hill Funeral Home visitation from 2 to 5 p.m.
Monday, October 18th
• Church visitation and Mass at St. Maximilian Kolbe Catholic Church from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
• Burial at Rose Hill Cemetery at 12:30 p.m.
• Lunch at St. Maximilian Kolbe Catholic Church at 1:30 p.m. (all are invited)
For those who cannot attend services in person, St. Maximilian Kolbe Catholic Church will be live streaming the Mass on Monday, October 18th at 11 a.m. – https://saint-max.org/Parish/Emergency-Remote-Plan.
In lieu of flowers, the family invites you to consider a donation to one of the following in honor of Jennifer’s life:
• St. Maximilian Kolbe Catholic Church in Liberty Township, OH
• Send Me on Vacation – http://www.sendmeonvacation.org/donate – an organization providing breast cancer vacation support that was very important to Jennifer. She enjoyed a trip to Puerta Vallarta and sponsored her sister sharing a trip with her to Cancun. Your donation would help to provide a breast cancer survivor with a trip in Jennifer’s name.
• The Cholangiocarcinoma Foundation – http//www.cholangiocarcinoma.org/donate
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