Obituary: Jill Ann Schiro Jamison - Class of 1968

WINNETKA, ILL./MADISON - Jill Ann Schiro Jamison, age 57, passed away on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2008, at Midwest Palliative and Hospice Care in Winnetka, Ill. Born and raised in Madison, Jill was a longtime resident. In 1979, she met and married Scott Jamison, also of Madison, and moved to Lexington, Kentucky to share their love of horses. In Lexington, both Jill and Scott worked at the fabled Spendthrift Farms. Jill's fondest memories from that period were of watching the foals romping with their mothers in the morning mist. In 1981 the couple's daughter Tyler was born. The family moved back to Wisconsin to start a horse farm on the Jamison country homestead in Muscoda, where their son Sean was born in 1984. During this time, they were owners in a racehorse, Hurdy Gurdy Man, trained by Wayne Lucas, and often raced by the renowned jockey, Angel Cordera. When Scott was offered a job as marketing manager for a thoroughbred track in Oklahoma, the family followed him there. Eventually, they returned to the Midwest, and resided in Winnetka, Illinois where Jill thoroughly enjoyed the role of wife and mother. Not ready to become an empty nester, when the children went off to college so did Jill, becoming house mother to the Delta-Delta-Delta sorority on Langdon Street, commuting between Madison and Winnetka. In those days, it was easy to find the "Tri Delt" house; the one with the spotless front yard. Jill worked tirelessly on that house, planting flowers, keeping greenery in front door pots, and making sure the girls all felt pride in their home away from home. The overarching theme of Jill's life was that of mother. She took immense pride in her role. Mother to her two wonderful children, Tyler and Sean. Mother to the foals she brought into the world. Mother to her sorority "daughters." Mother to her pets, Kodie and Spencer. Mother to her numerous nieces and nephews who have learned to care for others as she cared for them. During her illness, Jill became mother to herself balancing traditional and alternative treatments in her own way. She impressed dozens of healthcare workers of all disciplines with her tireless dedication to her health, nutrition and mind-body work. And they routinely went out of their way to help her on her journey. Jill is survived by her husband, Scott; her children, Tyler and Sean; her mother, Audrey Yost; her sisters, Jan (Schiro) Bawden and Carrie Schiro; and her brothers, Paul Schiro and Brian Schiro, and their families. She is preceded in death by her father, Damian. The family extends a grateful thank you to Jill's hospice team, Jan, Margaret, and Dr. Katz, and the entire staff of Midwest Palliative and Hospice Care, and Jill's spiritual guide, Bonnie Speno of Northshore Healing, who helped fill Jill's journey with dignity and grace. A lifelong lover of animals, Jill had suggested that memorials be made to the ASPCA at www.aspca.org.

Originally published in the Wisconsin State Journal on October 5, 2008; submitted by Michael Vahldieck (Class of 1968)