Jane Housewright

Jane Housewright, 73, of West Hartford, CT, passed away at home on February 4, 2024. She is survived by her husband, Willis Housewright, and daughter Kathryn Housewright, both of West Hartford, as well as daughter Meghan Housewright and her partner, Amber Ebarb, of Washington, DC.

Jane was born and raised in the North End of Hartford, graduating from Weaver High School in 1968. After two years at the University of Connecticut she went to work at Aetna in Hartford as a technical writer. It was there that she met her husband-to-be, Willis, whom she married in 1973. The following year, they moved to West Hartford and, soon after, Jane became a devoted stay-at-home mom.

As a mother, Jane was creative and fun, and took great delight in seeking out cool toys at Christmas and taking her family to amusement parks. She especially loved any sort of game - board, card, electronic or lawn. Jane was also a dedicated volunteer at Morley Elementary School and Hall High School while her children were students there, as well as one of the leaders of Brownie Troop 350. 

After her girls entered college, Jane realized another dream when she and Willis started fostering litters of kittens and puppies who were too young for adoption. Over the next 10 years they fostered hundreds of animals, adopting several cats and dogs along the way. 

Gardening was another one of Jane’s passions, both at her home in West Hartford and her vacation home in Vermont on Lake Memphremagog. She and Willis also enjoyed bird watching in both locations as well. Jane was very knowledgeable about birds and plants and felt a strong kinship with nature.

Jane’s sense of humor and quick wit, her handiness and Yankee ingenuity, and her loyal affections will be sorely missed by friends and family. Her liberal tendencies with treats will be sorely missed by the family dog.

Services will be private and at the convenience of the family. In lieu of flowers, donations in Jane’s memory may be made to Our Companions Animal Rescue, P.O. Box 956, Manchester, CT 06045 or at www.ourcompanions.org.