Janette Ann Walley passed away peacefully on Monday, August 6, 2012 while benefiting from the compassionate care of the Sunset Nursing Home staff in Boonville, NY.
In her final hours, she was surrounded by several close family members who offered their love and appreciation for the impact she had on their lives.
Janette was a caring, thoughtful, and loving wife, mother, and grandmother who provided tremendous wisdom and guidance for all.
Her wry sense of humor and down-to-earth practicality were trademark qualities as well.
She enjoyed home improvement projects, crocheting, traveling, reading, and was a devout Catholic.
The two greatest joys in her life, however, were her grandchildren and poodles.
Born Janette Ann Yacobelli on December 28, 1926 in Utica, NY to Guy and Catherine Yacobelli, she went on to graduate from Proctor High School in 1945.
Like many of her generation, she survived numerous hardships. Among those was the loss of her mother and a life-threatening case of rheumatic fever, both occurring in her early years.
That early adversity was soon followed, though, by what she would often describe as her single fondest memory: meeting her one true love, Charles (Chuck) Walley.
The newlyweds began their storybook lives together in Syracuse, NY before moving to the ranch house that they would call home for more than forty years in Rochester (East Irondequoit), NY.
Janette had very few regrets in her life, but would occasionally express some degree of disappointment that she hadn’t followed a youthful dream of becoming an attorney.
Of course, few women attended college in that era and, ultimately, she chose the more traditional path of wife and mother. That decision, however, didn’t prevent her from eventually pursuing a career in the legal profession, where her thirty-nine years of dedicated service to Mitchell T. Williams, Esq. led to her being acknowledged by her peers as one of the most knowledgeable and respected legal secretaries in Rochester.
Following her retirement in 1995, she moved from Rochester to her father’s favorite place on earth, Camp Bon-Air in Otter Lake, NY.
With the “old homestead” having been in the Yacobelli family since 1944 and her immediate family already in place right next door, the transition was an easy one.
Still, she always looked forward to spending time with her “warm-weather” family and friends in Sarasota, FL where she wintered.
Janette is survived by her son, Charles L. Walley, Jr., daughter-in-law, Susan L. Walley, and grandchildren Christina M. Walley and Troy C. Walley, all of Otter Lake, NY; brother, Guy A. Yacobelli, Jr. and sister-in-law, Shirley F. Yacobelli, both of Utica, NY; sister-in-law, Theresa M. Yacobelli, of Venice, FL; sister-in-law, Barbara J. Walley, of Rochester NY; three half-sisters; two half-brothers; eight nieces; six nephews.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Charles L. Walley; beloved brother, Lawrence A. Yacobelli; brother-in-law John A. Walley; and her parents.
Calling hours will be held from 9 to 11 a.m. on Friday, August 10 at Dierna Funeral Home, 2309 Culver Rd. Rochester, NY 14609.
A Funeral Mass and Rite of Committal will take place at St. Cecilia’s Church, 2732 Culver Rd. Rochester, NY 14622 followed by a Procession to White Haven Memorial Park, 210 Marsh Rd. Pittsford, NY 14534 where Entombment will be conducted.
Gifts in Memoriam should be made to Sunset Nursing and Rehabilitation, 232 Academy Street Boonville, NY 13309.
A local service is being planned with details to be announced in a future issue of The Weekly Adirondack.
