Janet Erjavec

After a long, full, loving life, Janet MacGregor Erjavec passed away peacefully at home surrounded by family on January 10, 2021.  Born on March 31, 1927, in Sioux City, Iowa to Ronald and Hildred (Kenna) MacGregor, minutes after her twin brother Robert, following their older brother Duane by two years.  She graduated from Mason City High School in 1945 and started working for the FBI in Washington D.C where she developed a fondness for listening to the Scottish preacher Peter Marshal.  Shortly after that she found her way to Denver, CO and took up residence in a boarding house where she met her husband of 49 years, Kenneth Erjavec.  Janet and 3 of her friends at the women’s boarding house met Ken and 3 of his friends and at the men’s boarding house next door.  The 4 couples each married and formed lifelong friendships.   Jan and Ken were married on July 13, 1948 in Mason City, after Ken graduated from the University of Denver.  Janet then followed in his footsteps, enrolling at the University of Denver.  Janet worked as a secretary for many years at Mountain Bell before returning to the University of Denver to continue her studies.  She completed her Associate’s degree in Business Administration in 1958 and her Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration in 1960.   Janet moved on to other jobs over the years, at U.S. Fish and Game and Red Rocks Community college, during which time she and Ken settled in Wheat Ridge where they designed and built a home to last a lifetime.  In this home they raised their family of 4 children.  Janet’s life was devoted to her four children and her husband.  She saw to it that the family attend church every Sunday where they were regulars at Wheat Ridge Lutheran church. She later joined Shepherd of the Hills Presbyterian Church and continued to attend until March 2019.

Janet had many talents, loved her convertible, being outside, and spending time with friends.  She enjoyed welcoming people into her home and gathering around the dinner table.  She could stretch any meal to include guests and often said “just put another potato in the pot and another chair around the table.”   Janet enjoyed skiing trips with the family when her children were young, playing bridge with friends, knitting, baking bread and traditional slovanische poteca for the holidays, she played tennis and golfed regularly.  She and her tennis group could be found playing at their favorite courts across Jefferson County, even shoveling the courts at Wheat Ridge High School during the winter months.  Jan was active all her life and continued playing tennis well past her 85th birthday.   She and Ken enjoyed the golfing every weekend, weather permitting, for over 30 years.  Janet had an adventurous spirit, which guided her on many family camping trips, cross country road trips, and backpacking in the beautiful mountains of Colorado with her family and friends. She had a notoriously bad sense of direction, though, and would often get lost even with a  compass hanging from the windshield to help with orientation.   Jan and Ken loved traveling as well, visiting all fifty US state capitals and traveling abroad where they enjoyed meeting people all over the world.   Janet was blessed with the companionship of her dear friend John Martin after her husband’s passing.    She continued to travel with John and other friends and was fortunate to see and experience so much of the world.

In true MacGregor fashion, Janet cherished all things Scotland.  She often sported her Scottish plaids, attended the annual Highland Games in Estes Park, loved the bagpipes, and always wore her red MacGregor plaid kilt on St. Patrick’s Day.

Janet loved and was loved by her family, her friends, and her many pets over the years.   She always stressed how grateful she was for the little things in life and was rewarded with a bountiful one.   She was preceded in death by her husband, Kenneth Erjavec, in 1997.  Janet is survived by her children, Kenny Erjavec of Port Aransas, Texas, Wynn Wildeman (Dave) of Meridian, Idaho, Allan Erjavec of Cologne, Germany, and Holly Erjavec (Pi’imauna Aiu) of Boulder, CO, her grandchildren Corissa Wildeman, Joanna Galloway (Keth), Samuel Wildeman, Lea Erjavec, Tammy Erjavec, Kanoe Aiu, and as if to pass on her own special gift, twin great grandchildren on the way.  A private memorial service was held at Ft. Logan Cemetery.  The family is saddened that the current circumstances leave them unable to host a celebration of life and ask that you safely honor her memory in your own thoughtful way.  We would like to thank the wonderful staff at Home Instead Senior Care for taking such great care of Janet over the last year and a half.  Her wish was always to stay in her own home and her family is eternally grateful that you made that possible.   We would also like to thank the staff at Encompass Hospice.  In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to The Denver Symphony or your favorite animal shelter or rescue organization.