Janet Blanchfield

Blanchfield, Janet Allison (Kilburn) died November 23, 2024, at age 89.  She was a resident of Cokesbury Village, Hockessin, DE and previously a longtime resident of Brandywine Hundred.  Born in Erie, PA (Lawrence Park), she was the daughter of Corttis and Mildred Kilburn.  She and high school classmate Robert Blanchfield married in 1956 following her graduation from Villa Maria Collete, Erie, PA, and are the parents of and survived by Linda Dillow (Roger), Natalie Bomberger (Steven), Michael Blanchfield (Beth), and Thomas Blanchfield (Jennifer).  Jan was predeceased by Bob, in 2008, her parents, and brothers William and Robert.  In addition to the children above, Jan is survived by seven grandchildren: Stephanie, Russell, Allison, Andrew, Jordan, Kendall, and Lindsey; and two great grandchildren. Jan also leaves the second love of her life, Harry Heath, with whom she shared love, companionship, a home filled with laughter and a love of travel and activism, for over 10 years.

Jan, Bob and the children changed residences with Bob’s careers in the U.S. Air Force and the DuPont Company, living across the U.S. and in England, returning to Delaware for the last time in 1973.  Jan was employed in various bookkeeping, accounting, and office management positions, and was an income tax preparer for H&R Block and independently.  She and Bob co-owned a financial advisory firm, JARAB, for 14 years following Bob’s retirement from DuPont.  Jan was an active member of First Unitarian Universalist Church and a former member of Concord Presbyterian Church where she served as a Deacon, Elder, and Trustee.  She continued intellectual pursuits with the Academy of Lifelong Learning (Osher) for 18 years, and she served as a Delaware Hospice volunteer.  Former affiliations include American Field Service (as an exchange student to Germany in 1952), and the Delaware Valley Chapter of the association for Macular Diseases, where she was Treasurer for eight years.  Within the Cokesbury community she served as a member of the Residents’ Council, Residents’ Advisory Committee, White Elephant Committee, Music from the Masters Committee and Social Events Committee.  She was a proud founder of “Thirsty Thursdays” and loved the duplicate bridge games.  She was a member of two book clubs, one for over 40 consecutive years.

A memorial service will be held at Cokesbury Village, December 21, 2024, at 11:00 a.m.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests contributions to Hospice at Acts Retirement Living at Cokesbury, or First Unitarian Church, Wilmington, DE.