Mary Janice Branton Moser passed away on August 17, 2022 at the age of 95 in Baton Rouge. Known as “Janice” and “Oma,” she will be remembered as an intelligent, humble, strong-willed, and loving wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. Born in Ringgold, Louisiana on March 12, 1927, she valued education from a young age and received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from LSU. She went on to have a 50-year career in teaching and social work. She met her devoted husband Frederick “Opa” Moser, a native of Switzerland, in New Orleans, and they had a 73-year marriage full of adventure. In 1950, they moved to the Philippines for 10 years. Janice became the teacher to expat children in a one-room schoolhouse and gave birth to their three children while abroad. The family settled in Baton Rouge in 1960. Janice balanced a full-time career as a social worker with the State of Louisiana while being a caring mother and later grandmother. She was her family’s undisputed matriarch and “glue,” hosting a lunch at her
home every Saturday that brought three generations together for bonding, laughter, and sometimes spirited debate. She was a constant presence in her children’s and grandchildren’s lives and the first to lend a helping hand – baking cookie cakes for birthdays, mending school uniforms, and making detailed plans for family events. She was an avid letter writer, Master Gardener, caretaker of cats, and international traveler into her late 80s. She was a parishioner at Trinity Episcopal Church and also enjoyed attending services at St. Aloysius with her husband. She was preceded in death by her father, Robert Lee Branton; mother, Fannie Kate Truly Branton; and brother Robert Branton. She is survived by her husband Frederick Moser;
brother David Branton and wife Lynne Branton; son Frederick Moser and wife Min-Joo Kim Moser; daughter Kay Moser Reed and husband Thomas Reed; son John Moser; granddaughter Helen Moser and husband Clark Barbieri; granddaughter Katherine Moser; granddaughter Carolyn Reed; and great-grandson James Barbieri. An Episcopalean burial service will be held on Monday, August 22 at 10am at Greenoaks Funeral Home & Memorial Park in Baton Rouge. Reception to follow.
