Janet’s Celebration of Life
January 19, 2024
Warren’s reflections
On behalf of the Hewitt, Bowden & Sundeen families, I would like to offer our sincere gratitude for your love, care, and support over the past several weeks; for being here today to celebrate Janet’s life, legacy, and NEW life; and for your thoughts, prayers and support in the days, weeks, and months ahead. 
This is a CELEBRATION -- of Janet’s life, a life lived well here on earth for 69 years AND even more so, her eternal life in heaven where all things are made new, there’ll be no such thing as broken, and Janet will know God completely, as He knows her completely.
Janet was the love of my life for nearly 46 years, before she went home.  Three of the four gospel writers captured the words of a parable where Jesus compares the light of a lamp to the light of a follower of Jesus.  As Taylor read from Matthew’s gospel, Janet is that light that shines now, and will continue through her children, their spouses, grandchildren, and me.  Paraphrasing the late Billy Graham.  “You have recently read, or heard, that Janet Hewitt has died. Don’t you believe a word of it. She is more alive than ever. She just changed her address and has gone into the presence of God.”  Her life, light, and legacy continue in us, and she will always be with us, when we see the fingerprints she left all around, in the heartbeats we feel, in a memory, or as a whisper in the wind.
Janet’s faith, quite spirit, and reflection of God’s light is what drew me into a personal relationship with Jesus, shortly after we met. Many of you are here because she radiated God’s light directly to family, friends, and for over 50 years her PEO sisters, or indirectly through her family; while there are hundreds of examples of that light, three come to mind (one for each of our kids)  
-- through Sarah’s work at Children’s Hospital making sure that the doctors & nurses have the right supplies & equipment they need to deliver live-saving care
-- Brian as he cares for many on the streets of Wenatchee and serves to keep the city safe, and 
-- Adam, as he and Jesscia, train up their four children in a home based on a strong biblical foundation.   

If you observed Janet and my 46-year shared ministry in our family and church, you might have noted I was the one that did most of the playing.  What you may not have seen is that Janet was really the playful one.  I hope you could tell in many of the pictures and videos you saw in the slide show, how playful Janet was; she also served a spaghetti dinner to her family with NO utensils, and taught Sarah, Brian & Adam how to hang spoons from their noses; she brought so much laughter and joy to her family & friends.  We’ll miss her deeply AND her light will always be with us. 
 
Janet has always been incredibly creative, and a lady of style.  From the very beginning of our life together, our home has been warm, comfortable, welcoming, and a place people wanted to be; especially her children and grandchildren.  I always felt a little bad for our kids and their spouses trying to extract their kids from Janet; amid their tears that “I didn’t want to go home”.  

Janet was particularly proud, and rightfully so, of her graduation with honors from the Seattle Art Institute’s Interior Desing program in 2012; especially given that a high-school teacher once told her “she had no artistic skills”.  One tangible reminder of Janet’s incredible design talent was brought to my mind just the other day as I watched Aron look around our home. With a crack in his voice, I heard him say, “there is so much of Janet in every room.”

As you heard in the video of Tenley reading from the book of Ecclesiastes, “for everything there is a season.”  None of us know why this particular season is upon us now, rather than many years in the future.  What we do know is what Moses said, in the 31st chapter of Deuteronomy, “Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail nor abandon you”.  Janet’s family takes great comfort in knowing this, we cling to these promises, and the presence today & in the future, of a living and merciful God.

I’ll close with a story from Winnie the Pooh.

"Today was a Difficult Day," Said Pooh.

There was a pause

"Do you want to talk about it?' asked Piglet.

"No," said Pooh after a bit. "No, I don't think I do."

"That's okay," Said Piglet, and he came and sat beside his friend.

"What are you doing?" asked Pooh.

"Nothing, really," Said Piglet. "Only, I know what Difficult Days are like. I quite often don't feel like talking about it on my Difficult days either.

"But goodness," continued Piglet, "Difficult Days are so much easier when you know you've got someone there for you. And I'll always be here for you, Pooh."

And as Pooh sat there, working through in his head his Difficult Day, while the solid, reliable Piglet sat next to him quietly, swinging his little legs...he thought that his best friend had never been more right."

Today we celebrate Janet’s life, AND we will honor her as we continue to shine the light she was to us. At the same time the, the loss of Janet is real, and our grief is acute. So, THANK YOU, for being a Piglet to each of us over the past couple months and in the days and weeks to come.

I heard it said once that when you lose someone so close, the rhythm of your life changes. For the Hewitt/Bowden family we’ve changed from 18/18 time, if there is such a thing, to 17/18 time; but, it is still MUSIC.  

May God’s peace that passes all understanding fill our hearts today, and in the days to come.

With grateful hearts and much love.

Dear Warren & family,
Marjorie & I have so many wonderful memories with Janet going back to our junior high years in Job's Daughters in Arlington Heights, IL. Our hearts go out to you & your family with her sudden passing. I know she loved her family dearly & was so thrilled to become a grandmother!  Steve & I wish we lived closer to be able to come for her service. We are so grateful you all could be by her side & lifting her up in prayer.  Beverly & Steve Allen, Fredericksburg, Texas

Janet was my dear P.E.O. sister and fellow officer in our chapter this year. I will miss her sense of humor, the stories of her beloved grandchildren, her competence (if we needed something done, we knew we could count on Janet), her sisterhood, and her faith. My sincere condolences go to all who knew her more deeply than I. Her passing is a great loss to all of us, but especially you, the family to whom she was devoted.

I am so thankful to know you were all with Janet when she passed into glory. She was a beautiful woman! I pray that you feel God's loving hands wrapped around you all as you grieve. I look forward to celebrating her life on the 19th. I'm going to go make her molasses cookies now, and I might eat them all! 
Love,
Robin Chaloupka (Berreth)💔

OBITUARY

Janet Gayle Hewitt

23 May, 1954 – 13 December, 2023

Acacia Memorial Park & Funeral Home

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