Janet Kay Woolsey, 80, of Carmi, IL, peacefully went to Heaven on Tuesday, September 2, 2025, at her residence in Carmi, IL surrounded by her loved ones. She was born on September 16, 1944, in Chicago, IL, the daughter of Virtus and Helen Blanche (Musgrave) Winter. Janet married Kenny Woolsey on March 14, 1965, and they shared over 51 years of marriage until his passing on December 8, 2016. Janet was a 1962 graduate of Carmi Township High School and a 1964 graduate of SIU-Vocational Technical Institute. After working several clerical jobs and getting married in 1965, she became a farm wife and mother until she entered back into the workforce as a teacher’s aide in 1982 working at Big Prairie and Crossville Schools. In 2003, she graduated with her Bachelor’s degree in education at SIU and continued her career as a special education teacher at Brownsville school until her retirement in 2012.
She gave her life to the Lord and was baptized at Zion United Methodist Church where she attended for 23 years. And, for the next 57 years, she was a member of Concord United Methodist. Her service to her Savior was often displayed by acts of love through children’s ministry such as directing VBS, teaching Sunday school, and writing and directing holiday plays. She spent many days driving around the community calling on neighborhood children and families to come to church. One of her favorite ways to serve God was through her passion for playing the piano both in and out of church until she was no longer able due to her Rheumatoid Arthritis. Janet was a skilled seamstress from a young age starting in her adolescent years through 4H, continuing through White County Home Extension and even sewing her own wedding dress, her sister’s wedding dress and many of her children’s clothing. One of her last stewardships using her passion for sewing was very near and dear to her heart. She was a volunteer seamstress for an organization called Alison’s Angel Gowns where she sewed burial gowns for stillborn babies made from donated wedding dresses.
Putting her hands in the dirt was her therapy. Her flower garden was where she would go to lose her mind and find her soul…it was her heaven on earth and there were very few places she would rather be. Second only to watching her grandsons grow up. Janet is survived by two of her children, Stacey Woolsey and Angie (Jeff) French, 2 grandsons, Cooper and Cameron French, all of Carmi, four siblings, Richard Winter of Carmi, Alan (Teresa) Winter of Cleveland, TN, Sheila (Doug) Westfall and Kevin (Kelly) Winter of Carmi, special friends, Linda Hall and Frances Rush; and several nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband and three children, Daniel, Darin, and Jeremy Woolsey; and a daughter-in-law Kristen Woolsey.
Funeral services for Janet Kay Woolsey will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, September 7, 2025, at Campbell Funeral Home in Carmi. Visitation will begin at 1:00 until time of service at Campbell Funeral Home. Burial will follow at Union Ridge Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be made in Janet’s memory to Foundation Fighting Blindness and will be accepted at Campbell Funeral Home. Because of Janet’s love for anything that bloomed, we would love to fill her memorial service with flowers. If you feel so inclined, a handpicked bouquet from your own garden, a plant, a basket from the local florist, or a single flower…it would be our greatest way to honor her legacy.
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