Janice Marie Hilburn Patterson was the oldest child of F.M. and Jessie Cain Hilburn. She was born in Cotton Valley LA 7 Aug 1941 and passed onto be with her Lord 22 Nov 2002 at her home in Farmerville. She graduated from CVHS in 1959 as class Valedictorian, moving on to Louisiana Polytechnic Institute, now known as Louisiana Tech University, graduating in 1963 with a B.S. in Mathematics. After graduation she commenced a career-long employment with Bell South as an Engineer. She accepted early retirement in 1991, subsequently moving to their home on Lake D'Arbonne to be able to be near her parents so that she could assist them as they were well into their golden years. After retirement she became heavily involved porcelain artistry or china painting as some may reference. She was truly gifted and subsequently also became a teacher. She belonged to the club in Ruston and the state-wide Louisiana Porcelain Teachers and Artists Organization, displaying her work at their annual meetings, and of course as many relatives know works adorn the walls and homes of many of us.
Janice left the family many fond memories to hold onto. She was a sweet loving mother and wife, who loved her family and her pets. She loved to fish! Throughout her childhood and adult life until her health failed, she fished the lakes and bayous of Louisiana, pridefully catching Crappie and Redfish. One of the fish stories she related most often was the time she took her Mother fishing for Redfish down river from New Orleans. The luck was good, catching a fish with almost every cast, and the cooler was soon full and time to go home, but Jessie wanted to just stay on the bank and continue to fish while they went home for the night to get another cooler. Dennis managed to convince her the mosquito attack would not be worth it and so reluctantly they went back home with lots of good eatin'.
She loved to travel! Almost since she and Dennis married they had a recreational vehicle of some kind which she enjoyed sharing with her family. She went out of her way to include her mother and sister in her camping trips to the Smokey Mountains, and longer trips Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona. She also loved riding motorcycles and all terrain vehicles. Her brother Donald enjoyed numerous vacations with she and Dennis, riding motorcycles in the mountains and camping out in motels. They also spent several good vacations riding 4-wheelers in the Kiamichi Mountains of southeastern Oklahoma as well as the sand dunes in northeastern Oklahoma. Her brother also has many fond memories camping around central Europe when Janice and Dennis came to visit him in Belgium. They managed to see the highlights of Holland, Belgium, Germany, Austria and Switzerland via VW Camper. She loved the holidays with family, always being there for her brother to pick him up and drop him off at the airport to ease his travel home for those holidays.
Her brother also has many memories growing up and from their adult life after we had gone off to make their way in the world. Good times at Black Lake, working at Mom's cutting wood or riding the tractor bushhogging the fields, etc., skiing, and so many more. And of course he has many things she beautifully crafted for him and other gifts which he'll always cherish. And her support for him was unconditional - even when she didn't exactly agree with what he was about to do! Equally her support for Mom, Daddy and Linda was exceptional. Being her younger siblings had a down-side though, because she set such high standards that they rarely could match. What a trailblazer she was - so brave and courageous! Another example of her profile in courage. Even though her last few years was at times torturous, being in-and-out of hospitals, she was the most incredible trooper - so tough and so emotionally stable it is totally amazing to her brother and to so many others. To her brother she was the bravest hero he can imagine and he is proud of his big sis. He and the rest of the family will miss her dearly, especially her telephone calls "just to hear your voice."DEATH: Died of Liver Cancer which matasticized from breast cancer.