Janice Zischke

December 2, 2021

Janice Zischke, 91, died peacefully at her home in  Leesburg, Virginia.  She was born in Watertown, Wisconsin in March, 1930 to Ida and Clifford Kuehnemann.  In June, 1957, she married Douglas Zischke. They were blessed with three children, Mark of Annandale, Deborah of Leesburg, Todd of Bumpass, and ten grandchildren.

Mrs. Zischke studied at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, earning a Bachelor's degree in nursing in 1954.  She started with a position as head nurse at the Children's Hospital in Denver, Colorado and later as orthopedics supervisor and clinical instructor at the University Hospitals in Madison, Wisconsin.

Following her marriage in 1957 to a US foreign service officer, she spent 20 years overseas teaching health and biology, serving as embassy nurse and engaging in various volunteer activities in the health field. She was also active in her church in each country her husband served.

Her first overseas post was Montevideo, Uruguay followed by La Paz, Bolivia.  While serving in Mexico, her children were born and her family traveled to Honduras, Argentina, and Guatemala.  While in Guatemala, she developed fashion shows to showcase local weavers, encouraging purchases of local textiles.  She always had a passion for supporting the underdog and supported local orphanages.

Returning to the United States in 1975, she lived in Carlisle, Pennsylvania for year while her husband attended the US Army War College.  She then traveled with her family to Iran, where she taught at Damavand College until her husband retired from the Foreign Service.

She returned with her family to the Washington D.C. metropolitan area in 1979 where she pursued graduate studies, obtaining an M.S.N in long term care and gerontology from George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia in 1982.  She subsequently worked with research projects, occupational health and elder fitness.  She traveled to various locations with FEMA and developed an exercise video for The Arthritis Foundation.

She was a devoted wife, mother and grandmother, always active and involved in the lives of her family.  She was also active in her church and with her husband was involved in many ministries, including teaching  English as a Foreign Language, Crown Ministries, greeters ministry, foreign missions, small groups and Bible studies. She was actively involved in foreign missions, supporting and entertaining missionaries in her home and traveling overseas to various countries on short-term mission projects.

She had a love of music and was an avid pianist, participating in the Adult Student Music Forum.  She attended many local concerts in the D.C. Metropolitan area and taught piano to her grandchildren.  She also traveled extensively with her husband through Road Scholar, participating in many learning series.

In her honor, a memorial service will take place on Saturday, December 18, 2021 starting at 10:00am at the Fourth Presbyterian Church in Bethesda, Maryland.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to his memorial at The Fourth Presbyterian Church, Missions Department, 5500 River Road, Bethesda, MD 20816-3399.