Jeanne Ludwig Cochrane, 97, of the Oregon communities of Banks and Forest Grove passed away March 21, 2023, at Tuality Community Hospital.
A
memorial service is planned for this coming summer at the Banks
Community United Methodist Church in Banks, OR. The date will be set
later.
Jeanne was born November 30, 1925, in Minneapolis,
Minnesota. She was one of four children born to Edward and Mary (Gable)
Ludwig. She grew up and received her early education in Saint Louis
Park, Minnesota, and graduated from Saint Louis Park High School in
1943. Following high school, Jeanne attended the University of Minnesota
Nursing School, obtaining her Public Health Nursing degree in 1948.
After graduating, she worked as a Registered Nurse in Minneapolis for a
year.
Jeanne met her future husband, Carl, while attending the University
of Minnesota. They met at a social dance hosted by the nurses’ dormitory
where she stayed on campus. Jeanne and Carl courted for three years
before they were married on June 18, 1949 in Minneapolis, at the church
Jeanne’s father rebuilt. Following their wedding, they made their home
in Seattle, WA, where Jeanne settled into her life as a devoted wife,
mother, & homemaker. In 1956, they moved to Melbourne, FL for a
short period, returning to the Seattle area the following year. They
made their home in the Seattle suburb of Mercer Island for several more
years, where they raised their five children. Jeanne returned to work as
a nurse for a period during that time, when her family especially
needed it. In 1972, the family moved to Aloha, OR. In 1975, Carl,
Jeanne, and family moved to the community of Banks, OR and settled into
their home on one acre overlooking the foothills of the coast range,
staying there until 2014, when Jeanne moved to Forest Grove.
Throughout
her long life, Jeanne’s husband, children, and – especially – her
grandchildren were the most important thing to her, as was her love for
Jesus, and for others. In addition to being the most loving wife,
mother, and grandmother, Jeanne was an active member of the Banks
Methodist Church, where she taught Sunday School for 35 years and was
president of the Women’s Society of Christian Service. Jeanne was the
embodiment of Love, Sweetness, and Giving; and she gave her all to
anyone around her, most especially to all the children she so loved,
greeting everyone with her ever-present smile & kindness. She was
everyone’s favorite babysitter, and her house was nearly always filled
with the various children from the neighborhood, who found in her a
loving shelter. She lovingly cared for the sick & the injured in her
community, shared her home-cooked meals, and visited the elderly,
keeping them company with her unfailingly warm, compassionate spirit.
Jeanne was amazingly artistic and especially adept at crafts, using her
talents to help entertain, educate, and enrich the lives of both
children and adults in her life. She never hesitated to sacrifice her
own needs & time, to do for others – willing to forego having a
“pristine” house in order to have the craft supplies needed for others’
sakes, or to allow little children to play freely. She used her nursing
skills to volunteer at schools, immunization clinics, and other settings
whenever needed – anything to help people, which was her life passion.
Every holiday or special occasion, Jeanne’s neighbors could always count on seeing her special paintings on her home’s windows, as she always celebrated life and wanted to use her creative & artistic talents to lift others’ lives. Her love extended as well to animals, as she viewed any of her own children’s pets as her grandchildren; to Jeanne, her daughters’ dogs were her “grand-puppies." She was also well known as being the most devoted fan of the Portland Trail Blazers, especially Terry Porter, and Clyde “the Glide” Drexler, sending hand-written birthday cards to every player on the team. One of the highlights in her life was getting to meet Terry Porter, Clyde, & her other “boys” up close, at a special celebration in Portland. Her sports-bug stemmed from her days back at the U. of Minnesota, where she cheered on her beloved Golden Gophers; their fight song became one of her favorites to sing, up to her very last days.
Jeanne is preceded in death by her husband, Carl Cochrane, daughter,
Loni Vendettuoli; brother, Charles Ludwig; and sister, Margaret
Varnuska.
She is survived by her 101-year-old sister, Betty
Fuller, of Minneapolis, MN; daughters, Jill Kilby and Gwen Steinbach,
both of Forest Grove, OR; her sons, Brad Cochrane of Forest Grove, OR,
and Todd (with spouse, Chun-Yen) Cochrane of Manhattan, KS; and her six
grandchildren: Blaine Vendettuoli, Heather Nielson, John Steinbach,
Rosie Ramirez, and Anne and Albert Cochrane.
In lieu of flowers,
the family suggests donations in Jeanne’s name be made to the University
of Minnesota School of Nursing; Banks Community United Methodist
Church; the American Cancer Society; or St. Jude Children’s Research
Hospital.