Janice Erickson, 84 of Davis, passed away on July 23, 2024 at the Centerville Care and Rehab Center. Memorial Service will be at 10:30 am Thursday, August 1, 2024 at the United Methodist Church, Hurley. Visitation will be from 5:00-7:00 pm Wednesday, July 31, 2024 at the church with a Prayer Service beginning at 7:00 pm. Arrangements provided by Hofmeister-Jones Funeral Home. The service will be broadcasted at https://www.facebook.com/HofmeisterJonesFuneralHome/.
Janice Eileen (Hughes) Erickson, 84, of Davis, South Dakota, a strong Midwestern farm wife and woman of deep faith who loved nothing more than the sun on her face and the company of family and friends, passed away peacefully on July 23, 2024, at the Centerville Care and Rehab Center. Her loving and loyal husband of 64 years, Dean, was by her side. Janice was a devoted spouse, a dedicated and affectionate mother and grandmother, and a generous member of her rural community. She was beloved by so many, including her dear sisters and the numerous nieces and nephews who adored their Aunt Jan.
Janice was born March 2, 1940, in Vermillion, S.D., the fourth of five spirited girls of Ralph and Florence Hughes. The five sisters — Fran, Lela, Rosalee, Janice and Karen — arrived within seven years of one another, forging a closeness that has endured and provided great joy and comfort throughout their lives. Their parents divorced early on, leaving Florence a single mother who instilled in her daughters grit, frugality and resourcefulness — traits that would serve Janice well in her life.
At Vermillion High School, Janice excelled in music, earning a spot as a flutist in the South Dakota All-State Band three consecutive years. After graduating from high school in 1958, she worked for two years as the secretary for the dean of the University of South Dakota School of Nursing. Her impressive typing and shorthand skills helped her land the job.
At a basketball game while still in high school, Janice met Dean Erickson, a farm boy from the Davis area. Their five-year courtship involved many late-night hamburgers at local drive-ins — Dean’s idea. After they married on Jan. 24, 1960, Janice left her secretarial job to join her husband in farming.
Later that same year, the U.S. Army drafted Dean. The young couple spent the next several years alternating between Davis and military housing at Fort Gordon (Benning, Georgia) and Fort Riley (Manhattan, Kansas). They soon started a family: Sandy came first in 1962, then Doug in 1964. Jeff arrived a leisurely 10 years later. Together, Dean and Janice made a cheerful and caring home for their children.
Janice always wanted to be a mother, and she was wonderful at it. She devoted much of her time to her children’s needs, embracing motherhood with great passion and selflessness. Every morning began with the rattling of pans — the start of a hearty farm breakfast. She systematically worked through 15 volumes of the Childcraft series of educational books with her children, teaching them to make stilts out of tin cans, totem poles out of Quaker Oats containers, and miniature boats out of walnut shells. She was an active mom outdoors, ice skating with her children on the Vermillion River, sledding down Turner Hill, and biking to Davis to buy Twin Bings at Hezzie’s Variety Store. Later in life, Janice loved being Nate’s grandma.
Though a town girl, Janice threw herself into rural life and became an equal partner in farming. Hard-working, unfussy and deeply tanned by the sun, she drove tractors, birthed calves and chopped weeds out of soybean fields. To augment the farm income, she worked part-time for a decade as a dietary assistant at Pioneer Memorial Hospital and Nursing Home in Viborg. It was hard labor — she cooked meals for more than 100 people a night — but she greatly enjoyed the nursing home residents and treated them as cherished members of her extended family.
Janice’s relationship with her younger sister Karen was especially meaningful. The two leaned on each other in difficult times, with Janice providing support and stability to Karen as she raised her two daughters as a single mom. Nieces Kim and Angela spent considerable time on the farm and grew up loving their Aunt Jan for her sense of adventure and her rock-solid presence in their lives.
Over the decades, Janice made countless contributions to the life of the United Methodist Church. Generous with her time and talents, she served as president of the Hurley United Methodist Women’s Group, the Hurley American Legion Auxiliary, and the Davis Doers Club. She was a decades-long member of the Centerville chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star, rising to worthy matron, its highest leadership role.
During her full life, Janice enjoyed gardening, playing piano, listening to country music, watching “Jeopardy,” harmonizing with her sisters during sing-alongs, and especially spending time with family and friends. She will be deeply missed.
Janice is survived by her beloved husband Dean; daughter Sandy (Jeffrey) Tennyson of Custer; sons Doug of Madison, Wisconsin, and Jeff (Barb) Erickson of Centerville; grandson Nate Erickson; sisters Rosalee Shears, Fran Johnson and Karen Gibbs; and many nieces, nephews and friends. She was preceded in death by her parents and her sister, Lela Walz.
Janice’s family wishes to thank the wonderful staff at Centerville Care and Rehab for their dedication and thoughtfulness, and to the staff of Moments Hospice of South Dakota for making Janice’s final weeks more comfortable.
