Jan Iceland was born in 1946 to Donald and Gloria Gumpertz. The middle of three girls, she grew up in Los Angeles close with her cousins and extended family, and enjoyed visiting her grandparents in the City of New York and the citrus fields of Oxnard. Attending high school in California and Illinois, Jan found great peace and joy in sailing and being on the water; later traveling and exploring the places and foods of the world. In more recent years her greatest enjoyment came from spending time with her eight grandchildren and being part of their lives.
An independent spirit, Jan moved to North Carolina in 1964 to attend Duke University and met the love of her life, Steve Iceland. Married in 1966, the newlywed Icelands joined the Peace Corps. After returning and moving around the country, Jan and Steve were drawn back to Southern California along with their two young girls. In 1976 the family settled in Oak Park which quickly became their forever home. As the family grew with the addition of two more children, Jan became an integral part of Oak Park and it became an integral part of her.
Seen by many as a moral thread in the community, Jan was a vocal leader in Oak Park, pushing for the formation of a new school district and later serving on the OPUSD School Board for 21 years. She continued her work more recently as a children’s advocate on the board of Child Development Resources of Ventura County.
Jan instilled in her four children a nature of service and wanted them to live good lives full of happiness. The love for her children was supplemented by the joy of being a grandparent, and most of all she was immersed in the love of her husband of nearly 57 years.
She will be deeply missed by her family, friends, and all who knew her.
