Janice Beverley Collins

February 11, 1956 - December 30, 2022

Janice Beverley Collins is survived by her husband Barry, her son Aron and his wife Heidi, son Josh and his wife Jen, daughter Leah, and grandchildren Averi, Lanie, Austin, Rilee, Raegan and Chase. She was predeceased by her parents Ruth and Carlton (Carl) Kipp, and leaves behind her sisters Vicki Rodrigues and Sheri Kipp. She also leaves many beloved nieces and nephews who viewed her like a second mom.

Janice was born in Vancouver, BC, on February 11, 1956. Later, she became big sister to Vicki and Sheri. After a few years living in Vancouver, the family moved first to Prince George, BC, and then to Sooke, BC.

Once the family moved to Sooke, Janice’s maternal grandmother, Lillie Brown, was a big influence in her life and taught her about the Bible and Jehovah God. At 11 years of age, Janice asked her parents if they could stop celebrating the non-scriptural holidays because she wanted to please Jehovah and serve him. She dedicated her life to serving Jehovah at 15 years of age and was baptized on July 23, 1971.

Four years later, on July 26, 1975, she married Barry Collins, the love of her life. Her great joy has been being a mother to her three children and six grandchildren. Her life included several moves – to Ucluelet, BC, briefly to the Alberta oil fields, then to Vanderhoof, BC (or to “The Hoof”, as its called by those who know it well), and lastly to the Stony Plain area of Alberta. Leah used to tease her mom about the “adventure” she took moving to the Alberta oil fields with Barry. Jan and Barry had their two little boys at the time (Leah was born later), and they lived in a camp trailer with no running water! Leah joked that Jan gave up normal comforts and followed Barry just like Sarah of Biblical fame left the comfortable town of Ur and lived a nomadic life in tents with her husband Abraham.

After the adventure in the oil fields, the family settled in Vanderhoof. There, Barry built a log house and they had a happy rural life raising pigs and other animals. Jan especially loved the big winter gatherings with family, sledding and playing cards.

In time, Jan and Barry’s boys grew up and married Alberta girls and moved away from “The Hoof”. Jan loved her family fiercely and it was painful for her to be separated from them. So she and Barry moved again, this time settling in Stony Plain, AB to be close to her boys and her precious grandkids.

Jan recently shared with her granddaughters how she and Barry became a couple. It’s a cute story, as told by Jan. She grew up in the same town and knew Barry and his family quite well. She said she always wanted to be “in the Collins family” and was always at the Collins house as she was friends with Barry’s sisters. Jan said she always thought of Barry as “just her friends geeky older brother”... that was until Barry decided it was time to find a wife and their mothers arranged that Barry would be Jan’s escort for a special dinner. As Jan told it, her dad drove up to the Collins house to pick up Barry and his mom for this special dinner, and Barry jumped in to the van, sat beside Jan and instantly put his arm around her like they were an item. Jan said it just “felt right” and suddenly he wasn’t just her friends older brother anymore! She got her wish to be a part of the Collins family after all.

They married and went on to have a wonderful life together. Their life has not been an easy one with family and health issues. But they stuck together in everything and the trials they faced only made their bond stronger as a couple. People often commented on how they seemed like newly weds even after being married many years.

There is so much that could be said about Janice. She will be remembered by her family as a great cook; as the “glue” of their family; as a “hip” grandma who attended a Shawn Mendes concert with her granddaughters; as someone who loved being surrounded by people – especially family – and who enjoyed planning get togethers; as an avid thrift shopper who was a regular at Value Village every senior’s discount day; as someone who loved water, be it the ocean or floating peacefully on a lake; as a fan of Tina Turner music; as a crafter and scrapbooker; and as a brave fighter who successfully battled cancer three times.

In short, she will be deeply missed by her family, friends, and all who knew her. We eagerly look forward to seeing our beloved Jan again in the new world soon to come.

The Memorial Service will be held on Saturday, January 7, 2023 at the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Spruce Grove, Alberta at 2:00pm.