Janet was born and reared in Columbus, Ohio to Robert and Marian Canary. Janet graduated from the College of St. Mary of the Springs (now Ohio Dominican University) in Columbus before obtaining her Masters of Social Work from Western Reserve College (now Case Western University) in Cleveland, Ohio.
It was at Western Reserve that Janet met David L Alexander, a fellow graduate student. Janet and David married in August 1962. After graduation, Janet and David moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where they lived together in the same West Nashville home for 59 years.
Janet and David had two sons, Paul and Mark. Janet was a devoted mother who diligently read to, played with and tended to her boys in their youth and continued to provide them love and support as adults.
While in Nashville, Janet developed a lifelong love of birds and birdwatching that took her to well-known birding spots around the country but was centered on her well-tended backyard habitat where many generations of cardinals, chickadees and other birds were happily raised.
Janet loved reading throughout her life, and in her later years became particularly fond of the gothic novels of DE Stevenson, eventually owning nearly all of the 40-plus books by the prolific British novelist.
A devout catholic, Janet served as a lay eucharistic minister at the Cathedral of the Incarnation in Nashville for many years.
Janet is survived by her husband David, her sons Paul and Mark, her grandchildren Genetha and Michael, and her sisters Virginia and Margaret. She will be missed by many.
A funeral service will be held for Janet on December 16, 2021 at 1:30pm at the Cathedral of the Incarnation.
Memorial donations in memory of Janet can be made to the Cathedral of the Incarnation in Nashville, Tennessee Ornithological Society or the American Bird Conservancy.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.marshalldonnellycombs.com for the Alexander family.
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