Janice Charlene (Gustafson) Bigham, 87, of Buda, TX passed away after a brief illness on December 17, 2021. Jan was born May 1, 1934 in Two Harbors, Minnesota to Chester and Alice (Anderson) Gustafson. She graduated in 1952 from Two Harbors High School, where she was a band majorette and she was known by her nickname, Snoose.
Janice met the love of her life right out of high school. Set up on a blind date, she met Kenneth (a fly-boy stationed in Finland) while serving him in a soda shop in Two Harbors, where both she and her mom worked. They married on March 14, 1953, starting their lives together living on 5th Avenue in the apartment above her mom’s house. They lived the military life for almost 28 years, living in many locations such as Pyote, Texas, the Philippines, Ft. Walton Beach, Florida, Austin/Bergstrom AFB and retiring in Buda, Texas. They were blessed with four children and were married 64 years. She was proud of her country and her service as a military wife.
Jan and Ken showed a zest for life and spent considerable time traveling together in their RV. Janice also loved spending time with her family and friends, watching Texas Longhorn Football, the San Antonio Spurs, line dancing, crossword puzzles, and playing cards at the Senior Citizen Center in Buda, Texas. She could whip anyone in a game of cards and could always finish her daily crossword puzzle in no time flat. On Wednesday’s at 3:00, you would find Janice hosting happy hour, enjoying her “go to” drink, a dirty martini with two olives.
