Jeanette Anne (Hickel) (Harnish) Parnall passed peacefully March 3, 2021 in Madison, WI. Mom was born October 21, 1934 in Claflin, Kansas as the youngest of 10 children.
She graduated from Claflin High School and St. Francis School of Nursing. She loved farm life with her parents and siblings and often talked about canning, cheerleading and baseball. Mom was on a baseball team and continued to love baseball throughout her life. In her professional life, she had many nursing roles; recovery, industrial, pediatric, triage and school nurse. Before marrying, mom traveled out west with her oldest sister, Gertrude, including visiting Alaska where two of her brothers lived.
Mom’s four children, 10 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren were a source of joy for her. She will be remembered as always cheerful, quick with her phone calls, and for her beautiful piano playing which everyone enjoyed. She lived in several places and particularly enjoyed the sun of Phoenix, as well as Olathe, KS and Randolph, WI, both cities putting her close to her daughters. She found peace in her deep religious beliefs and in nature including the Rocky Mountains of CO and Door County, WI. Her faith grounded her in life and in her death carried her into the arms of the loving Lord.
She is preceded in death by her father, Robert Anthony Hickel; mother, Emma Pauline Zecha; four sisters; Gertude Hickel, Kay Stalker, Vi McCafferty and Maxine Hickel; four brothers; Walter Hickel, Elmer Hickel, Vernon Hickel and Robert “Bobby” Hickel; two husbands, Lonnie Harnish and Jim Parnall; and one great granddaughter, Gabrielle Pappathopoulos. Jeanette is survived by sister, Patty Degner-Keenan as well as four living children, Verne Harnish, Kathleen Harnish McKune (David), Sharon Borde (Dennis) and Karen Diskin-Dickson (Lyle) as well as 10 grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
The family asks that memorial gifts in Jeanette Hickel’s memory be made to www.sunflowerhouse.org and www.catholiccharitieswichita.org Grasse Funeral Service in Rio, Wisconsin served the family.
Funeral arrangements provided by
Grasse Funeral Service
401 Angel Way
Rio, WI 53960
Great Bend (Kan.) Tribune, March 14, 2021
