Janis Elaine Cowan

Jan Cowan passed away peacefully on Tuesday January 28th, 2025. Jan was at home surrounded by her husband Tom, her sons Nick and Jake, her bird Sunny, and her dog Maggie. Born on May 2nd, 1952, she was a strong and loving woman with a big community that loves her.

Jan was diagnosed with ALS in May of 2024, and was a model of love and courage in her journey with the disease. She was a former hospice volunteer, and she deeply valued self-empowerment and quality of life to guide her through ALS.

Jan and Tom Cowan were married in 1971. They lived a full and loving life together. They had two sons, Nick (born 1972) and Jake (born 1976). She loved them all deeply, in spite of the occasional groans that came from living as the only woman in a house full of boys.

Family was the most important thing to Jan. Her marriage to Tom is an example of love and devotion that guided so many other people in their relationships. She loved her sons, her siblings, her cousins, nieces, nephews, and especially her grandkids. What made her happiest is family gatherings in the summer, at the Thanksgiving table, and around the Christmas tree.

She loved music and passed that love on to her sons. Her favorites included Motown classics, the Beatles, James Taylor, and the song 'Always Look on the Bright Side of Life' from Monty Python. As a child of the 60's, she was also quite pleased when cannabis was legalized in Missouri, and definitely had not tried it before it was legal. She was also a vegetarian long before it was cool to be a vegetarian.

Jan loved to travel. In their retirement Jan and Tom took road trips and enjoyed time at a cozy lakehouse in the Ozarks. Jan also leaves behind to this world an impressive collection of plants and greenery. An eternal optimist, she probably thinks Tom will keep watering them.

She loved baseball and the St. Louis Cardinals. Her childhood favorite was Orlando Cepeda, and she attended a World Series Game in 2013 and loved it (even though the Cardinals lost).

As much as she loved people, Jan may have loved animals more, and surely wants this to mention her birds Sunny and Duffy, and all of her dogs: Sloopy, Cinnamon, Toffee, Reuben, Kelcey, Bandit, Levi, and Maggie.

In lieu of flowers, the family would like to honor her love of animals and ask for donations to the Five Acres Animal Shelter. Donations can be sent directly to the shelter (1099 Pralle Lane, St. Charles, MO 63303) or online using the link at the bottom of this page.

The humans in her life that will miss her include Tom Cowan, Nick and Lisa Cowan, Porter and Jessie Cowan, EJ McMahon, Jake Cowan and Ali Bourque, Judy and John Shipp, Dave and Anne Edelen, Colleen and Tim O'Sullivan, Peach Clyde, Mike and Joanne Loftus, many nephews and nieces, and countless, countless others. Jan loved everyone fully, and the greatest hope of her community is that she felt the love from us too.

A visitation for Janis will be held Sunday, February 2, 2025 from 2:30 PM to 3:30 PM at Alexander-White-Mullen Funeral Home, 11101 Saint Charles Rock Road, St. Ann, MO 63074, followed by a funeral service at 3:30 PM.