Janice B. McKenzie of Bennington, New Hampshire, died peacefully at Concord Hospital on Thursday, September 10, with her husband and children by her bedside. The daughter of Francis Hanc and Josephine (Fidrych) Hanc, she was born and raised in Webster, Massachusetts. She was a generous and compassionate person, and realized her dream of being a nurse after volunteering at a local hospital. She earned an associate’s degree in nursing from Quinsigamond College and obtained her registered nurse credential, serving in Worcester, Massachusetts, Tampa, New Orleans, and finally at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, where she became Director of the Medical ICU with a focus in pulmonary care.

While Janice loved nursing, when her children were of school age, she left UCLA for a job she loved even more: wife and mother of her two young children, Emma and Andrew. She loved her children and was justly proud of the adults that they became. She delighted in being a grandmother to Anita and Nima Rafi, the children of her stepdaughter Amy McKenzie. During their visits, she taught Anita how to knit and made cookies and ice cream with both children. Janice doted on her five-month-old granddaughter Margot, the daughter of Andrew and his wife Christina, and got to see Margot at her bedside in Concord Hospital. Janice was overjoyed to be able to attend Emma’s destination wedding in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California, in early June of this year.

When her husband David retired, Janice was able to return to New England, moving with her family to Bennington. Here she was co-founder of the Bennington Rhubarb Festival, a yearly event that brings the community together. She served on the Peterborough Players auction committee for several years and was an active member of the Divine Mercy Parish Women’s Guild, acting as chair of the bake table at the annual Holiday Stroll for many years. She was a member of a knitting circle that meets weekly and a book club that meets monthly. Janice loved gardening, traveling, entertaining, celebrating holidays, and decorating her house for company.

Janice is survived by her loving husband of 36 years, David McKenzie; daughter Emma Todd and her husband Brian of Nashville, Tennessee; son Andrew McKenzie and his wife Christina and daughter Margot of Phippsburg, Maine; stepdaughter Amy McKenzie and her children Anita and Nima Rafi of Toronto, Canada; brother David Hanc and his wife Donna Gray-Hanc of Jefferson, Maine; niece Jocelyn Hanc and her wife Megan Marlow; nephew Ryan Hanc, his wife Morgan and their son Jonathan of Mine Hill, New Jersey; and sister-in-law Gail Bartley of Seattle, Washington.

A funeral Mass will be held for Janice at Divine Mercy Catholic Church in Peterborough, New Hampshire, on Thursday, September 24 at 11 am, followed by a luncheon prepared by the Divine Mercy Women’s Guild.

The family recommends that those who wish to make a memorial gift in Janice’s name consider their local food pantry or the Grapevine in Antrim, New Hampshire, or their own favorite charity.