ANNOUNCEMENTS > Volunteer Profile
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"I'll never be able to thank you enough for all you've done to help make this play a winning production for Barnstormers. The pieces of the blank jigsaw puzzle have come together because you helped me keep my sanity."
Valerie Jahns recently found this heartfelt sentiment in a card from a Barnstormers Theatre director among her mother's things. The words are a fitting tribute to one of our theater's most dedicated volunteers, Carol Jahns, who passed away in March.
"I can tell you that Barnstormers was one of her favorite associations," says Valerie. "She really loved it. She used to say. 'Theater people are the best people.'"
Carol, 79, who was born in Eugene and grew up in Medford, fell in love with theater when she was in high school, according to her other daughter, Wiskie. She married her high school sweetheart, and the young family -- which grew to include Valerie, Wiskie and their brother, Jack -- settled in Southern California.
In addition to theater, Carol's interests included dancing, gardening and skydiving. She was one of the first American female parachutists and helped to found Skydiver magazine.
Carol and her second husband, Jeff, who survives her, moved to Grants Pass in 1973. The couple owned The Muff Shop, Climate City Motorcycle and Woodcrafters Furniture here over the years. Carol got involved with Barnstormers soon after her move here.
"She really loved the sense of camaraderie at Barnstormers," recalls Wiskie. "She loved being involved with the people - the cast, the crew, the volunteers - and she enjoyed the community involvement.
"It wasn't so much that she talked about it. It was that the theater was an integral part of her life. It was like living to her."
While Carol's main contributions to Barnstormers were behind the scenes - she did everything from sweeping floors, to painting sets, to designing the playbill - she did take the stage on a few occasions.
"I remember coming to a few of her shows at Barnstormers," says Wiskie, who resides in Redmond, "and going down to the green room. I remember thinking my mom is so talented...She was a very multi-talented lady."
A memorial service for Carol will be held at 10 a.m. June 22 at our theater. Carol's Barnstormers friends are invited to attend. You also are invited to visit www.since1928hull.com to read or send condolences to Carol's family.
~by Tricia Drevets | |
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