Janet Sue Cogswell
April 12, 1939 – February 18, 2024
With a heavy and unexpected heart, we inform you that Janet Sue Cogswell, 84, passed away peacefully at Nathan Abelson Hospice, Las Vegas, Nevada on
February 18, 2024 after visiting her son and family while John was away fishing. Her passing followed a massive ischemic stroke on February 8th consisting of a large clot blocking blood flow to the right side of her brain. Janet is survived by her husband, John M. Cogswell, her son Robert Crowe, Jr. (Cyndi) and granddaughter Carleigh, her daughter Whitney Kreger, and her sister, Barbara Rieb. Oddly, the night before the stroke, her son’s timid little dog, BonBon, jumped up on her lap and began licking her, something unusual for this shy little dog to do. It makes one wonder what she knew.
Janet was born in Nevada, Missouri on April 12, 1939 and grew up in Western Kansas where her father managed Firestone stores. When she was 10 years old, her parents moved the family to Goodland, Kansas. There she met 10 year old John Cogswell (“Cappy”). John noticed the new girl in town, soon made Janet his girlfriend and held her hand in a movie. Though, shortly thereafter, she moved on to other boys. A few years later her family returned to Scott City, Kansas, where Janet finished high school. She became the head majorette of the high school band and went on to win a regional competition in Gunnison, Colorado. Later, she became Miss Southwest Kansas which was followed by being runner up Miss Kansas in 1960.
Janet attended Kansas University including studying a year abroad in Paris. She graduated in 1961 with a B.A. in Communications and married Robert Crowe. They moved to New Jersey where he worked for Celanese and Janet stayed home and raised her two beautiful children. In due course, the family ended up in Coronado, California where Janet loved her daily walks with her little dog while looking out at the ocean. Janet joined the Coronado Republican Women’s Club and became responsible for obtaining
speakers and managed the GOP car in the Fourth of July parades.
In 2014, by pure chance, Janet received an email from John Cogswell who reminded her that he held her hand in the movies long ago. That email cascaded hundreds of emails over the next year – no calls, no pictures. When a reunion luncheon of Sherman County grade school friends was planned in Phoenix,
John told Janet he was going to go and she agreed to go too. John picked her up at the airport and when he saw her, she waved with a smile. John picked up her suitcase and she took his other hand in hers.
From that time forward they always held hands.
John and Janet were married in September 2016 and returned to John’s home in Buena Vista, Colorado. In 2020, upon the advice of John’s long-time friend, Bill Foxley, they moved to Old Baldy near Saratoga, Wyoming. During their time there Janet made friends, worked diligently to develop a good golf swing and enjoyed their daily morning walks around the golf course.
John and Janet enjoyed 10 years of love and happiness together. Janet was a kind, beautiful, gentle and very patriotic person. She was also tough as nails for reasons too many to recite. John’s heart is broken. His hands are lonesome.
In lieu of flowers or contributions, she would want you to consider voting Republican, donating to your local Republican candidates, watching Fox News and evaluating one of John’s maxim of Pythagoras, “touch not the balance above the beam”.
