Janice Marks, age 89 of Redwood Falls, passed away Saturday, June 5, 2021 at Carris Health Redwood Seasons Hospice House.  Memorial Services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, June 24, 2021 at the Redwood Valley Funeral Home, with burial to follow in the Redwood Falls Cemetery.  Visitation will be one hour prior to the service at the funeral home.  A reception will immediately follow the services at Zeb Gray Shelter in Ramsey Park.  Stephens Funeral Service – Redwood Valley Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements.

Janice Marks was born in Swift County, Minnesota on November 13, 1931, the youngest of nine children.  She spent several years in the Jean Martin-Brown orphanage in St. Paul, until she was adopted by Clarence and Ann Cobleigh of Redwood Falls.  Jan graduated from Redwood Falls High School in 1949, and then attended Mankato State College.  While in Mankato, she was a finalist in the Miss Mankato contest.  For twenty years, Jan searched and found her 8 siblings and birth parents.  Jan married Vern Marks of Minneapolis, and they had one son, John.  They moved to the family farm in Redwood Falls, and she worked for Northwestern Bell.  As a member of the Redwood Valley Saddle Club, Jan rode her beloved five-gaited horse, Colonel, every day.  They were in horse shows and parades throughout the state.  Jan believed in giving back to her community, and was involved with many committees.  She served as Bloodmobile Chairman for 8 years, was a member of the 20^th Century Study Club over 50 years, and a charter member of SMAHC and helped form the first Art Center in Redwood Falls.  She was also a charter member of the Redwood County Humane Society, and McPhail’s Mill Questers.  She served on the Foreign Student Program and on the United Way board.  She volunteered for 15 years in the hospital coffee shop, was a member of Friends of the Park for 25 years, and served as chaperone for Miss Redwood.  Jan was a member of First United Methodist Church where she taught Sunday School and Release Time. She sang in the choir and was secretary to the board.  Friends and family were always welcome at her home in the woods.  She fed and cared for lost and abandoned animals.

Jan is survived by her granddaughter Krista Marks (Joe Hall) and great-grandson Jonathan Hall of St. Paul.  She is preceded in death by her parents, and son John.