Janet Small Obituary, Death – It should not come as a surprise that Janet was born on a warm and sunny summer day because she was known throughout her entire life for the warmth of her nature and for the way that she brightened the lives of all those around her. She was a natural athlete who particularly enjoyed jogging, and she was usually active and constantly on the go. She decided to participate in a half marathon in Florida to raise money for cancer research after learning that her father had been diagnosed with an extremely uncommon form of leukemia.
She had a passion for equines and canines, particularly German Shepherds, but the people that meant the most to her were her two kids, Dakota and Devyn, and her partner, Kip. Despite beginning her professional life as a member of a band that played covers of songs by the Partridge Family and was called The Love Flowers (Janet, her sister, and their friends used to perform on the back porch for their parents), Janet went on to have a successful 28-year career in the OPP, following in her father’s footsteps.
She was enthusiastic and devoted to her work in the OPP, and had she not been cruelly diagnosed with Stage IV Glioblastoma, she would have continued to serve for a longer period of time. When she had her first craniotomy, the first question she asked her surgeon was, “When can I go back to work?” (after the procedure) Despite the fact that she was never able to go back to her job, the members of her OPP family were there for her and her family through every step of the process, as did her wonderful friends and neighbors. Janet was first given a diagnosis of 12 to 14 months, but she refused to accept this and extended her time to over 28 months.
As a result, she was able to attend and even dance at the wedding of her daughter. Our hearts are filled with gratitude for the joy, love, and laughter that she brought into our lives. We are in wonder of how she has handled her diagnosis with such grace and optimism, and we are in awe of her. We would like to express our gratitude to the entire medical team, in particular Dr. Emmerson for the excellent palliative care that she received, as well as to her RN Robin, who was by our side during the entirety of this process.
Her father, Edward (Ted), Edward MacDonnell, passed away before Janet was born. She is survived by her mother Cheryl MacDonnell, her soulmate Kip Wohlert, her daughters Dakota Small (Colin Moore) and Devyn Barr (Ethan), her sister Virginia Eichhorn (Paul), her nephews Zachary Mandrapilias (Jessica Allen), Matthew Eichhorn (Savannah Hesse), and Joseph Eichhorn, as well as her ever-devoted kitty cat Thunder and her grand-doggy Journey. She was preceded in death by her father