Jane Kimpel

Jane Barrett Kimpel, 101, of Sun City, Arizona passed away February 10, 2020. Jane was born May 27, 1918 in Indiana County, Pennsylvania, the daughter of Albert and May Barrett. Jane attended elementary school at a one-room country school, high school at Dayton Vocational High School in the small town of Dayton in Armstrong County, PA. While in high school she played basketball and mush ball (better known as softball) and was catcher on the mush ball team. Then the fall of 1936, began her nurse’s training at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh, PA. After graduating in the fall of 1939, she took her “State Boards” and was awarded her R.N. She was hired at the Hospital and worked the P.M. shift on one of the private floors where she met her future husband Clinton Kimpel whose mother was one of her patients. Clinton has always said “his mother said he should look Miss Barrett over as she looked like a nice girl”. He did, Jane and Clinton were married June 8, 1940 at the Barrett farm home. Jane became a “Scrub Nurse” in the operating rooms at the hospital until November 1940 when Clinton was called to Active Duty in the US Army as a 1st Lieutenant stationed at Ft. Belvoir, Virginia. They lived in Alexandria, Virginia where daughter Hope was born. In May of 1942, Clinton was given a medical discharge from the Army. They moved back to the Pittsburgh area and lived in an apartment in Swissvale and in May of 1944, they bought their first house in Pleasant Hills, PA. Daughter Faith was born in 1946. In June of 1955, another family member was added when Margy Mowrey joined the family. Margy was the daughter of a classmate of Jane’s during nurse’s training and her father was a high school classmate of Clinton. Margy’s mother became ill and it was difficult for her father to keep the family together. So, Margy lived with the Kimpel family from age 1 ½ - 3. The family lost track of Margy for many years, but thanks to the internet, they reconnected in 2012, and Jane was able to see her several times since. Besides working for Allegheny General Hospital, Jane did many “kinds” of nursing – General Duty, Private Duty and relief industrial nursing at the Allis-Chalmers Co. and Continental Can Co. In 1965, she went to work at one of the suburban stores of Kaufmanns, a part of the May Co., as a sales person in the infant department. She was asked to be the nurse there in 1970 and was made the “Chief Nurse” and moved down to the main Kaufmann store. She was there until October of 1975, when Clinton took his retirement and they moved to Sun City. After moving to Sun City, she became a Volunteer at Boswell Hospital for at least 40 years, sang in the Women’s Chorus for 39 years, rang in the Handbell Ringers of Sun City, and was a Deacon, rang hand bells and sang in the Choir at First Presbyterian Church. Jane was also a member of Fairway and Lakeview Ceramics Clubs and cared for Clinton until his passing in 1998. Jane always loved dogs, helping Clinton in his building projects, and she enjoyed cooking and helping with dinners at church when needed. Jane is survived by her daughters Hope K. Adams and her husband John Adams, Faith K. Kalback and her husband Walter (Skip) Kalback, and her Foster daughter Margaret (Margy) Mowrey Harrell and her husband Claude (Chip) Harrell. Memorial service 2:00 p.m., Friday, February 21, 2020 at First Presbyterian Church of Sun City. Memorial donations for Jane are suggested to Barrow Neurological Foundation, 350 W. Thomas Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85013 www.supportbarrow.org or Alzheimer's Association, 225 N. Michigan Ave., Fl. 17, Chicago, IL 60601 www.alz.org