Myron Frederick Wildish

Janet was born June 27, 1912, and enjoyed a happy childhood in Terre Haute,Indiana, under the loving care of her parents Anna Grace and William C. Swearingen.

Fred was born August 28, 1917, to Frederick and Gertrude Wildish in Downer’s Grove, Illinois.

They met in 1940 at Columbian Enameling in Indiana, where Fred was a young engineer and Janet worked as an executive secretary. They were separated in 1941 when Fred enlisted in the Army and was stationed in the Philippines. After he fought the Japanese invasion of December 1941 and survived the Bataan Death March, Fred spent four years as a prisoner of war.

While always a Hoosier girl at heart, after Fred’s safe return Janet moved to Seattle to marry him in 1946. In 1953 they built their home in Normandy Park where they lived the rest of their lives. Janet was known as Auntie Jan to generations of neighborhood children and was also a gracious hostess and friend to many in the community through church, garden club, and bridge club. Uncle Fred was a gentle, thoughtful man who was always ready to help a neighbor, and was a perpetual tinkerer who took apart, fixed or improved almost everything in their home.

Janet passed away on November 26, 2005, and Fred passed away on January 30, 2006.

Janet and Fred were deeply devoted to each other, to daughter and son-in-law Betsy and Conn McQuinn, and especially their beloved grandchildren Caitlin and Alec McQuinn.