Obituary of Janet "Jan" Wray

Surrounded by her loving family, Janet Nelson Wray, 66, of Cincinnati, passed away in her home on October 4, 2023 after a four-month battle with pancreatic cancer. Janet was born April 3, 1957 to E. Paul and Kathleen Yost Nelson in Dearborn Michigan. She graduated from Carbondale High School, Illinois, in 1975. She studied nursing at University of Florida, and completed her advanced nursing degrees at the University of Washington (MS), and Loyola University, Chicago (PhD). Janet enjoyed a distinguished thirty-six-year career as a clinician and nurse educator at North Park University, Chicago, the University of Cincinnati, and Mount St. Joseph University, Cincinnati. Janet married Rev. J. Thomas Wray in Chicago in 1989, and is the loving mother of Kathleen Wray Swanner (Andrew) and James Nelson Wray who survive her. In addition to her husband and children, Janet is also survived by her beloved mother and father, Kathleen and Paul Nelson of Jacksonville, FL, and her brothers David and Jeffrey Nelson (Kelly), and several nieces and nephews. Janet was a gifted teacher and a beloved mentor to two generations of nursing students at the graduate and undergraduate levels, and a widely respected colleague to her fellow faculty members. Several of her student alumni nurses treated Janet at Bethesda North and UC Hospitals as she bravely walked her journey with cancer. She was Past President of the Board of Directors of the Ohio Chapter of the American Psychiatric Nursing Association and an active member of many nursing and mental health organizations. She made national and international scholarly presentations, consultations, guest lectures and received numerous honors and awards from professional nursing associations. Janet was a voracious reader, a loving wife and partner in parish ministry, a beloved mother, sister, and aunt to her extended family. She was a friend to many, a lover of life, travel, the outdoors, James Taylor’s music, and the Cincinnati Bengals. Her contagious smile and gentle spirit radiated joy and peace and trust in the Lord to everyone she encountered. She was a member of St. Vincent Ferrer and All Saints Catholic parishes, and a recently professed member of the Discalced Carmelite Order of Cincinnati. Visitation and Reception of the Body will be at Good Shepherd Catholic Church, 8815 East Kemper Road, Cincinnati, 45249, from 3-7 pm on Friday October 13. Mass of Christian Burial will be at All Saints Catholic Church, 8939 Montgomery Road, Cincinnati, 45236, at 11 am on Saturday October 14. All are welcome to the internment which follows immediately at Gate of Heaven Cemetery, and the Reception at Good Shepherd Catholic Church, 8815 East Kemper Road, Cincinnati, 45249 In lieu of flowers contributions may be sent to the Dr. Janet Nelson Wray Scholarship, Mt. Saint Joseph University, 5701 Delhi Road, Cincinnati, OH 45233. To donate online: http://www.msj.edu/janetwray