On Monday, September 26th, 2022, Janet Nelson, wife, mother of three, and grandmother of three, passed away at the age of 71 in Glenford, New York.
Janet was born Janet Marguerite Davis on July 30th, 1951 in Burbank, California, to parents Donna Darlene Gordon and Thomas Davis. Along with sisters Nancy and Diana, the Davis family settled in Los Angeles, where they owned and operated two diners, Sandbox and Surf Burger, on the historic Hermosa boardwalk. After spending her childhood swimming in the ocean and barefoot in the sand, Janet eventually travelled East in the fall of 1974 with, according to family lore, only two dogs and a sewing machine. After some time in Vermont, and her first NorthEast winter, she landed in Glenford, New York.
During a volleyball match at Woodstock Elementary School, she met her husband of 44 years, James Edward Nelson. It was love at first sight after she noticed his 501 button fly Levi’s. The two married on October 22, 1977 in Phonecia, NY. The pair constructed their first home in a weeks time, a small cabin on Abbey Road, living with nothing but their dogs and a wood-stove. They spent 44 months there, before building a larger, and warmer, home to welcome their first child, son Scott, followed shortly by daughter Kristen. After the move to Shokan, Greta joined. They spent the next decades raising homes and children on Old Farm Road. Janet was able to welcome her first grandchild, Lennon, followed by Torin and Teeka a year later.
Janet spent 48 years in the Northeast, sitting out in the sun with her beloved Jack Russel Terriers and baking Christmas cookies that will be missed for years to come. This is the Janet most of us will remember, but to our mom, her thoughts were never far from the beach. She brought it into her homes and her dashboard, with color and balance. Life in the mountains was really just a way to make the beach stay exciting and mythical, for all of us.
To Janet — we hope the sun is shining, the water warm, and the waves sizable.
Join the family! 
