Jane (Manson) Coskren, age 82, of Columbia, MD, a devoted wife, mother, sister, aunt and friend died suddenly at home, Monday, July 11, 2022, of a cerebrovascular event. Born and raised in Lynn, MA, Jane was a graduate of St. Pius V School and St. Mary’s Girls’ High School. Jane was a gifted and ambitious student. In middle school through high school years, Jane was an accomplished athlete excelling in softball and basketball, as both a team player and leader on Catholic Youth Organization teams and St. Mary’s Girls’ high school Basketball Team. Jane excelled in high school academically, was a Latin scholar, and won prizes in competitions.
During Jane’s youth, the Mansons lived in a semi-rural area of Lynn on a small lake. A dozen new homes were just beginning to be built. Jane, her siblings and friends enjoyed a Huckleberry Finn type existence of swimming and boating on the lake; climbing trees and playing hide and seek in the tall grasses; ice skating, hockey, and ice fishing in the winter. Even though Lynn was technically a city, Jane was really a country girl. Those early experiences helped develop an interest in wildlife and a special interest in birds.
After graduating from St. Mary’s High School, Jane attended Emmanuel College in Boston and graduated with a degree in English Literature. Her first position was teaching high school English in the Lynn School System. In her early twenties Jane married her high school sweetheart, Jack Farrell, of Lynn. Jane continued teaching high school English for many years in Washington D.C. area while completing studies for a master’s degree in English at the University of Maryland.
Jane was an avid reader and lover of great literature from her early years. In the early 70’s Jane began working part-time for National Geographic (NGO) as a proofreader. That experience opened her mind to unusual cultures and beautiful people, lands, and animals across the globe, and instilled an interest in world travel.
Jane and her family lived in many areas across the United States, Washington, D.C., Newark, New Jersey, Monterey, CA, and Wheaton, MD while Jack was studying to become a Clinical Psychologist before finally settling in Columbia, MD in 1975.
In the mid 80’s Jane began working in an internship position in the Department of the Army Human Resource Division. She advanced steadily, moving into a section of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission which resulted in her being named Director of the Department of Defense Appellate Review process for Eastern U.S. and Western Europe. During the last 10 years of her career with the DOD she visited Western Europe many times. She retired in 2004.
Jane was active in the Maryland Ornithological Society (MOS). She was instrumental, as a senior member of the editorial board, in the development of the First Atlas of Breeding Birds of Maryland and D.C., which chronicled the 800 different varieties of birds found in that part of the U.S. During her time as the Chair of the Columbia Chapter of the MOS she was selected to be the Chairman of the Organizing Committee and senior editor of a 2nd Atlas which was published in late 90’s. A 3rd Atlas is being developed which Jane was involved with developing. The comparison of this survey data as compiled by the MOS from these Atlases helps our scientists to understand and better prepare for changing geographic trends among the varieties of breeding birds in Maryland and D.C.
It was her love of birdwatching and hiking into exotic places to find birds that led Jane to meeting her second husband, Dennis Coskren. They had many similar interests and appreciated each other’s intelligence, wit and sense of humor. They soon discovered they had many other common interests: a love of family and New England, chocolate, classical music, NPR, bridge, Scrabble, and travel to exotic places. Jane and Dennis were married in 1997 and were active members of their community of Columbia and members of church choir and the community choral group. Jane and Dennis traveled extensively, often on bird sighting expeditions. They traveled to many National Parks in all states of the west coast, Denali National Park in Alaska, the Rocky Mountain States, Puerto Rico and many Canadian provinces including Quebec, New Brunswick, British Columbia, Ontario, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. Their expeditions took them to the Aleutian Islands in the Bering Strait, St. Lawrence and Attu from where they walked into Russia. They had two different trips to Africa to Kenya and South Africa. They traveled many times to Peru, Cuba, Panama, Columbia, Ecuador and Costa Rica.
Jane was part of a closely knit family and enjoyed visiting relatives and the numerous gatherings the Manson family had every year.
Jane is predeceased by the late Robert and Helene (Donovan) Manson of Lynn, MA and Monument Beach, MA. She leaves her loving husband T. Dennis Coskren, with whom she shared 24 years of marriage, her wonderful children, John P. Farrell, III, of Alexandria, VA and Helene F. and her husband, Michael T. Hall, of the Plains, VA and Captiva Island, FL.
Besides her husband and children, she is survived by one brother, Robert A. Manson and his wife, Frances, of Marshfield, MA and Naples, FL; and six sisters: Sally and her husband, Donald Anderson, of Silver Spring, MD; Kathi and her husband, William J. DeLeo of Daufuskie Island, SC; Helene and her husband, William C. Bois, of Middleboro, MA, Susan and her husband, the late Stephen E. Hill, of Lynn, MA; Ruth Manson, of Lynn, MA; and Jo-Anne Manson and her wife, Sandra Cullinan, of Wells, ME.
She is predeceased by her younger brother, Richard D. Manson. She is also survived by her ex-husband Dr. Jack Farrell.
Jane will be greatly missed by several cousins and dozens of nieces and nephews, and grandnieces and grandnephews (from both the Manson family and the Coskren family) and numerous friends who enjoyed her laughter, kindness, and generosity.
Arrangements are being made by Witzke Funeral Home, Columbia, MD. To view the obituary and send condolences online visit: www.Witzkefuneralhomes.com . In lieu of flowers the family requests that donation be made in Jane’s name to: Habitat for Humanity, or Maryland Ornithological Society, or the Montgomery County Humane Society.
A funeral mass will be held at St. John the Evangelist Roman Catholic Church, Columbia, MD at noon on Monday, August 1, 2022. To join the service being streamed on-line and get directions please visit St. John’s Website: www.sjcolumbia.org. Internment will be private. Friends and relatives may meet with the immediate family immediately after the mass to share condolences. A celebration for Jane’s life will be held with New England relatives at a later time.
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