Julia Jane Paver

Julia Jane (Keller) Paver passed away on June 21, 2023 in Canton, Georgia, at the age of 99. She was born on January 19, 1924 in Cincinnati, Ohio to Pearl S. Keller and Edith Grady. She was the 6th of 7 children. Jane grew up in Bethel, Ohio, where at the age of 10, her mother signed her up for singing and dancing lessons. Noting that she had an exceptional talent for singing, her instructor encouraged her to pursue a career in music. As a teen, she sang in many venues, performing solo or with a trio. Along the way, she took advanced lessons from a voice professional in Cincinnati. At a high school basketball game, she met her future husband, John E. Paver, and they married on July 31, 1943, the night before he was deployed to serve in WW2. During the war, she put her singing career on hold and did a variety of jobs for the “war effort”. When the war was over and John came home, they moved to Detroit so that John could go to pharmacy school and then medical school. They soon started a family and had their first child in 1947. They lived in Detroit until 1971, when they decided to move to Midland, Michigan. In 1977, her husband John sadly passed away. Not being satisfied sitting at home, Jane decided to take some college classes. She also went to work in the accounting department at Dow Chemical. When all of her children were grown, she decided to make a move from Midland. She spent years in Peoria AZ, Richland MI, and Atlanta, GA, all to be around family. She was a woman of many talents. In addition to singing, over the years she became an enthusiastic golfer. She painted several beautiful oil paintings, and created many projects with embroidery and cross-stitch. She was also an avid computer user. Until the very end she emailed daily, texted, and FaceTimed with family. Jane was a strong, intelligent, compassionate, and loving person. She was healthy, and even a little “feisty” until the very end. She will be very dearly missed by her family. She is survived by her six children, (Paula Jenay Cook, Marian Joette Thornley, Jennifer Griffin, Jana Dutton, John Paver Jr., and Jane Hodgson), 13 grandchildren, and 15 great-grandchildren. At Jane’s request, cremation has taken place and there will be no service at this time. The caring staff of Darby Funeral Home is honored to serve the Paver family.

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Julia Jane Paver

January 19, 1924 - June 21, 2023