Janet "Jan" Frances Ferguson, 72, passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on Tuesday, June 25, 2019 at St. Mary's Essentia Hospital in Duluth, Minnesota.

Janet was born to Joseph and Marie (Pivonka) Laitner on January 5, 1947 in Omaha Nebraska. Jan grew up there and attended Archbishop Ryan High School. She began her career at the age of 17 at Union Pacific Railroad. She progressed from office assistant to the position of Director of Budget and Planning; working for the same company before retiring after 38 years. While working for the railroad, she took a chance on a blind date and married the love of her life; Ed. She lived in Omaha until 2002 when she and Ed retired to the leisure life on Lake Vermillion, Minnesota.

Jan had a positive personality and worked hard to make friends and to keep them. She was on the Board of the Heim Foundation, a choir member at St. Mary's Catholic Church and on the Board of the Lake Vermilion Fire Brigade. One of her hobbies was knitting baby blankets for her nieces and nephew and great nieces and nephews. Although Jan had no children of her own, she was a second mother to all her nieces and nephews. She was a great golfer and cook, however, her favorite hobby was working with flowers inside her house or in her large garden.

Jan is survived by her loving husband Charles (Ed) Ferguson; her sisters: Loretta Laitner Seibold and Christine Laitner Flanagan (Patrick); brother Joseph Harold Laitner Jr (Raneta); nieces and nephews: Katie Flanagan Jarrett, Andrew Patrick Flanagan, Kelly Flanagan Overfelt, Joseph Robert Flanagan, Jana Seibold Wallace, and Roger Erick Laitner; and 10 great nieces and nephews.

A Memorial Mass will be held on Saturday, July 6, 2019 at 12:00 PM at St. Mary's Catholic Church, Cook, MN. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service at the church. Interment will be in Calvary Cemetery, Omaha Nebraska. Family prefers Memorials to: St Mary's Catholic Church, Heim foundation and Lake Vermilion Fire Brigade. To leave an online condolence visit www.mlakerfuneralhome.com