The Rev. Howard D. Janssen, 88, of Bartlesville, OK, died on Monday, July 2, 2018, at Jane Phillips Medical Center in Bartlesville, OK.
Funeral services were held Thursday, July 5, at the First Presbyterian Church in Bartlesville, OK, with Pastor Stephen Carl, of the First Presbyterian Church, officiating. Interment followed at White Rose Cemetery in Bartlesville, OK. Arnold Moore & Neekamp Funeral Home in Bartlesville, OK, assisted the family.
The Rev. Janssen was born on Dec. 26, 1929, in Pekin, to Julius Caesar and Nellie Ann (Reese) Janssen. He married Shirley Ann Alley in 1952, in Hammond, IN, and she preceded him in death.
He was raised and attended school in Illinois. After high school, he attended Gordon College in Massachusetts and married his wife.
The Rev. Janssen continued his studies at Gordon Seminary in Hamilton, MA, where he received his Master of Divinity. Upon completion of his seminary, he began his pastoral ministry at the First Presbyterian Church in Hillsboro from 1956 to 1970, before moving to Bartlesville, OK.
He and his wife pastored and lived in the Bartlesville area for approximately nine years until moving to Minnesota in 1979 to continue their ministry, then Wisconsin, where he retired.
Their family moved back to Bartlesville in 1994, and the Rev. Janssen began his prison ministry with Phil Lorenz, friend and longtime Bartlesville resident. After the death of his wife in 1995, he continued living in the area.
The Rev. Janssen was a member of the First Presbyterian Church in Bartlesville, OK, Bartlesville Choral Society and the Presbyterian church choir. He loved to sing and enjoyed camping, taking home movies and writing poetry.
He is survived by his children, Sharon Janssen of Gretna, LA, Deborah Janssen of Severn, MD, Daniel (wife Febe) Janssen of Hamilton, MA, and Paula DeJardin of Luxemburg, WI.
In addition to his wife, the Rev. Janssen was preceded in death by his parents; a son, David Janssen in 2004; son-in-law, Douglas Grove; brother, Edward Janssen; and a sister, Nellie Ann Irwin.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the choir department of his church in care of The First Presbyterian Church, 505 SS Dewey Avenue, Bartlesville, OK 74003 or Kairos Prison Ministry of Oklahoma, P.O. Box 54383, Oklahoma City, OK 73154-1383.
Online condolences to the family may be left at www.honoringmemories.com.
