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.
Janice was a strong woman of faith, a long-time member of the Buda United Methodist Church and a member of the J.O.Y. Sunday School Class. She is preceded in death by her husband, Kenneth, parents, Chester and Alice Gustafson, brother DD Gustafson, son Scott W. Bigham, grandson Jacob Austin Dickens and many other loved ones.
Carrying on her love for life are son Larry Bigham and wife Elaine of San Marcos, TX and daughters Tammy Bush and husband Jimmy of Chappell Hill, TX, and Bobbi Julien and husband Thad of Fishers, IN. Her legacy will continue to live on through her 9 grandchildren and 8 great grandchildren.
Visitation will be held at the Buda United Methodist Church at 302 Elm Street, Buda, TX at 9:00 AM on Thursday, December 23, followed by a service at 10:00 with Pastor Lisa Straus officiating. A small reception will be held in Jan’s honor immediately following the funeral service at the church. To view the live stream of the service, you can access this link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCl-jH1lUglXMS7qbmi6kYCQ
Interment will be held at noon following the reception at Cook-Walden Forest Oaks Memorial Park, in Austin, TX. You can view a memorial video or leave a condolence to the Bigham family at www.harrellfuneralhomes.com.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be sent to Buda United Methodist Church at PO Box 1196, Buda, Texas 78610.
