Jan Solej

Jan was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia on August 6, 1949, to the late, Jan Solej and Eva Majzlerova. He began his life with a deep curiosity about the written word and a belief in the power of stories. After graduating high school, Jan attended school for typewriting, a skill that opened the door to his first career in journalism. As a young man, he worked for a newspaper, where his love of language, observation, and storytelling took root.

After marriage, Jan made a significant shift in his life as political persecution upended everything he had built. Because he and his family were outspoken against the Communist Party, they were harassed and targeted by the regime. When a friend warned Jan that authorities were coming to arrest him, he was forced to flee or face imprisonment. It was a painful and difficult decision. His family then spent two years in an immigration camp in Austria before finally arriving in the United States. Before his escape, Jan worked as a uranium mine worker in his home country, taking on demanding and dangerous labor to support his family. During that time, he survived a devastating mining explosion that killed all of his fellow workers. As the sole survivor, Jan carried the weight of that experience with quiet resilience, gratitude, and resolve, qualities that would continue to shape his life through exile, hardship, and rebuilding in a new land.

Jan was hard-working by nature and a dreamer at heart; he never stopped imagining a better future. In 1987, he made the courageous decision to move his family to the United States, beginning a new chapter defined by perseverance and hope. There, he became a truck driver, traveling thousands of miles and living in many different states across the country. The road became both his workplace and his classroom, offering him endless material for reflection and stories.

Throughout his life, Jan remained a writer and a storyteller. Through both the written word and spoken memory, he had a rare gift for capturing moments, people, and the meaning hidden in everyday life. Jan loved to laugh and had countless great jokes; humor was one of his favorite ways to connect with people and make sense of the world. He loved cartoons and westerns, cars, and books, and he held witty, sharp, and deeply thoughtful views about life and humanity. A bit wild at heart, he earned the affectionate nickname “the Czech Cowboy.” He carried his past with him, Czechoslovakia, the mines, survival, and migration, but he always looked forward, guided by a deep belief in endurance and possibility. This spirit lived on in his writing, including his self-published short story collection, "Povidky Z Novel A Ze Stareho Sveta”, a reflection of his memory, humor, and enduring love for storytelling.

Jan will be remembered for his strength, his work ethic, his imagination, and the stories he told that kept his history alive. His life was one of survival, movement, and meaning and his story will continue through those who remember and love him.

Jan is survived by his children, Martina Solej (Kevin Burrows), Jan Solej and Tomas Solej; his grandchildren, Miles, Elizabeth, Eva, Hanna and Claire; his former spouse, Milada Solej; his step-brother, Marcel Kubin and his former sister-in-law, Ludmila (Milan) Horakova.

All services will be held privately. Condolences may be offered to the family below.