Jane Dale Harnish

Jane Louise Dale Harnish was born April 28, 1924, in New Castle, Pennsylvania. She was raised in Montrose, Pennsylvania, where she met Thomas I. Harnish on a blind date. They were married in 1944 in Charlotte, North Carolina, during Tom's training as a United States Army Air Corps pilot. They survived a serious car accident on their honeymoon night, which only strengthened their love for each other.

In the early 1950s, Jane and Tom entered missionary service with the Presbyterian Church (USA). Tom served in Korea while Jane and their children lived in Japan because of the Korean Conflict. They dedicated their lives to helping others and spreading love and kindness during subsequent assignments to Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Mexico.

Leaving the missionary calling, they returned to the United States and settled in Baltimore, Maryland for five years, where Jane's husband served as the administrator of the Presbyterian Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat Charity Hospital from 1960 to 1965. In 1965, they moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico where her husband was the founder of Presbyterian Medical Services (PMS) and where they enjoyed the beauty of the Southwest while making many dear friends. Her husband’s growing success and responsibilities in the healthcare field led the couple to move briefly to Albuquerque, and then to Illinois, Pennsylvania and Ohio.  Jane always found a way to volunteer in the communities where they lived, at hospitals as a Pink Lady, chairing church committees as well as being Board President for a non-profit.  In 1971, Tom and Jane embarked on a world tour of Presbyterian medical facilities. Jane has memories of an Ethiopian women’s choir greeting them, flying in a small plane in the hills of Afghanistan and posing with a python on her shoulders in Thailand.

After retiring in Albuquerque in 1993, Tom and Jane enjoyed local activities and traveling around the country in their RV. Tom passed away in 2011 and Jane moved into La Vida Llena Retirement Community the next year and found many old friends and made many new ones. She was a member of the Pan American Roundtable of NM, and enjoyed Bible study groups and was a voracious reader. Jane will be remembered for her fondness of RummiKub and Bridge, and for her kind heart and devotion to family and church. Her legacy will live on in the countless lives she touched throughout her years of service and the love she shared with her family.  Jane was doted on by her daughter and granddaughter who live in Albuquerque, and was visited by many family members and friends through the years.

Jane passed away peacefully on May 23, 2023, at the age of 99.  Jane is survived by her sons Thomas and Stephen, and daughter Jane Anne. She was also grandmother of ten, great-grandmother of eighteen and great-great-grandmother of one!

A memorial service in Albuquerque is planned, she will be interred in Montrose in the Dale family plot, next to her husband of 67 years. In lieu of flowers, Jane’s favored charities of many were the Alzheimer’s Association, the Menaul Historical Library of the Southwest, Roadrunner Food Bank and the Presbyterian Church.

A Memorial Service will be Saturday, June 24, 2023 at 1:00 p.m. in Carter Hall at La Vida Llena Retirement Community, 10501 Lagrima de Oro Rd. NE, Albuquerque, NM  87111.