Janice T Kessel

Janice Kessel, 85, a long time resident of Davenport, passed away Monday, August 17th, at Peakview Assisted Living, Centennial, CO. Cremation has been accorded, a celebration of life and burial will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Breakthrough T1D (formerly JDRF).

Janice Kathryn Terrell was born September 22, 1940 in Fairfield, IA to Wilson and Roberta (Ryman) Terrell. Janice graduated from Ollie High School in Ollie, IA in 1958. After growing up in Ollie together, she was united in marriage to her high school sweetheart and love of her life, Carroll R. Kessel on June 18, 1960, at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Fairfield, IA.

Janice graduated from William Penn University in 1966 with a degree in Elementary Education. She first started working as a teacher in Sigourney, IA then in Lisbon, IA. After moving to Davenport, IA in 1967, Janice began teaching in the Davenport Community School District. She took a break from teaching to raise her family, but returned and she taught for over 30 years, before retiring in 2012. Janice was passionate about teaching, spent many late nights grading papers, and found much joy seeing her students learn and grow to be successful. In her tenure, she had the opportunity to positively impact hundreds of children and their families in the Davenport community.

At home, she was fondly referred to as “Margo” starting when her grandchildren couldn’t pronounce “Grandma”. Margo/Janice loved spending time with her family and she enjoyed many trips to watch her grandchildren play sports (especially soccer). True to her teaching nature, she was constantly giving her grandkids little quizzes and tests to make sure their learning was up to par and checked in on their vocabulary and spelling.

Many will remember her for her fun and sparkly outfits, her witty personality and her stories. Many will also remember her for her love of music, playing piano and singing, and always whistling a tune while doing housework. She loved animals, collecting bears, bells and other knickknacks, but everything had its place in her ever-pristine house.

Those left behind to honor her memory include her son Matt (Bria) Kessel, grandchildren Andrew Kessel of Naples,FL, Alexandra Kessel and Wilson Kessel of Centennial,CO; brother Jess (Vickie) Terrell of Martinsburg, IA; her nieces: Jeslyn (Joe) Monaghan of Martinsburg, IA and Mary (Rob) Wells of Hedrick, IA. Janice is preceded in death by her husband of 64 years, Carroll Kessel and her parents, Roberta and Wilson Terrell.