Jan was born in Yakima, WA on April 21, 1951. She grew up in Tieton, WA with her family and spent many special days with her grandparents in Yakima. She graduated from a Highland High School in 1969 and immediately went to work at “Terrible Tommy’s” Café in Hood River, Oregon for her Uncle Buster Treddenbarger.
Jan returned to Yakima the following year and made a phone call that would change her life forever. Jan made the call to a man she had met at the Country Drive-In Theater. The man she called was Pat Arens. He would be the person she would spend the rest of her life with. Jan married Pat on September 30, 1972. Jan worked at various jobs throughout her life, but she was most proud of her time spent at the Harmon Center starting in 2000 and retiring in 2015. Pat and Jan traveled around to many different places for his various jobs. They made many lifelong friends along the way.
Nana was always very proud of her children and of her grandchildren, and they loved her back equally. Jan is survived by her husband Pat of 50+ years, and their three children; Sons Michael (Bella) and Nicholas Arens and Daughter Michelle (Jason) Martin. Jan is also survived by her grandchildren Ethan, Camille, Noah, Sunan, Jessiah, Josiah and Connor. She is also survived by her siblings Pam (Randy) Heide, Tammy (Mike) Folk, Dennis (Claudia) Robison, Brad (Evelyn) Robison, Gary Robison, James (Rebecca) Robison, and Mary Van Epps. Jan was preceded in death by her parents, Bob and Connie Robison, her granddaughter Ela Arens that passed at birth, her sister Dorene Stevens, and her sister in law Christina Robison.
We would like to give a special thank you to our son in law Jason’s parents, Eugene and Wilma Martin, for their special care of Jan. We would also like to thank Courtney Darby, Judy Webb and all of our friends that helped and visited Jan. As well as a heartfelt thank you to Heartlinks Hospice Care Unit for all of their help.
There will be a Rosary on Thursday, August 17, 2023 at 5:00 p.m. at Langevin El Paraiso Funeral Home, 1010 W Yakima Ave. A Memorial Mass will be held on Friday, August 18, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. at Holy Family Catholic Church, 5315 Tieton Drive. Jan will be placed to rest in the Mausoleum at Calvary Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Jan’s honor to Children’s Village. To share a memory of Jan, visit www.lepfuneralhome.com.
