November 2, 1937 – January 28, 2023
Janet “Jan” Pursley, 85, of Casselberry, Florida, passed away on Saturday January 28, 2023, at home surrounded by her family members. Throughout her long battle with cancer, she remained very much at peace with the future knowing that she would “either be healed now or upon Christ's return”. This faith in God proved to be an effective witness to family and friends.
Jan was born on November 2, 1937, to Elmer and Elva Messerli in Alhambra, Illinois. She grew up on the family farm where she learned the principles of hard work and discipline. Her early years of education were in a one room multi-class school on the property of the farm. Upon graduating from high school, she attended Southern Illinois University and received a degree in education which led to her first job of teaching high school mathematics in Columbia, Illinois.
In 1959 she was awarded a National Science Grant for advanced studies in mathematics which allowed her to further her education and receive a master’s degree in Mathematics from the University of Oregon.
It was at the University of Oregon that Jan met her husband Don Pursley whom she wed on June 9, 1962. Their first son Jeff was born in Evreux, France and their second son Tim was born in Okinawa, Japan while Don was serving in the military.
Jan used her education to teach Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, English and Religion to students in Illinois, Virginia, Colorado, Nebraska and California. Despite having retired from teaching in early 2000s, she still receives notes of appreciation from students that she taught.
Throughout her active lifetime she resided at addresses in over 10 states as well as lived abroad in both France and Japan. She was the glue that held her family together through frequent moves upon short notice and at each new residence would establish a beautiful and functional home.
Jan loved to travel and whether it was with her family, the military, or in support of Adventist Health International she went to numerous countries including Zambia, Malawi, China, Singapore, India, Curacao, Guyana, Mexico, Bahamas, Cost Rica, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands, and multiple islands in the Caribbean.
She enjoyed quilting, hiking, gardening, exercising, reading, and cooking. She completed her last marathon at the age of 70 and memories of her phantom cookies and making cheese fondue at the cabin in Wyoming will always bring a smile to our faces. Her greatest passion however was in spending time with her grandchildren. She loved to play with them, read to them, study with them, and do flashcards with them to memorize their addition/subtraction/division/multiplication tables. This is where she found her true joy.
She is preceded in death by her parents Elmer and Elva (Bardelmeier) Messerli. She is survived by her husband Don of over 60 years, sons and daughters-in-law Jeff and Vicki of Lincoln, Nebraska and Tim and Julie of Winter Springs, Florida, six granddaughters, Madalene, Taylor, Laurel, Olivia, Kate and Brooke, that made her smile each and every day, her sister Marlene of Michigan and brother Glenn of Colorado.
Her Celebration of Life service will be held at 4:00 pm, February 25 at the Markham Woods Seventh-day Adventist Church in Longwood, Florida.
The service will be live streamed through (click here) Markham Woods Church's You Tube channel beginning 20 minutes prior to the start time of 4PM EST.
You can find the service by using the link on their webpage. http://Www.markhamwoodschurch.org
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