Janet Lois Zintek

Janet Zintek, a longtime resident of Reno, Nev., passed away at her home Sunday, March 13, 2018. She was born Sept. 28, 1933, to Arthur Roy and Doris Lucile (Harms) Flomer, at St. Joseph's Hospital in Lewiston. Her grandparents, Henry and Eliza (Oldag) Flomer and Otis and Minnie (Wade) Harms, were early settlers and farmers in the Genesee area.

Janet's family, including her younger sister, Judy, moved in 1936 to Moline, Ill., where her father, Art, worked at the John Deere factory. They lived in various places, including in a small trailer in Coal Valley for a year, before moving back to Genesee in 1941. Janet graduated from Genesee High School in 1951 and enrolled in St. Joseph's School of Nursing in Lewiston for a year. Upon the closing of that nursing school, she transferred to Sacred Heart School of Nursing in Spokane, and received her registered nursing degree from there in 1954.

Janet worked as assistant safety director - "Queen of the Splinters" (first aid nurse) - at Potlatch Forests Inc., and also at St. Joseph Hospital. She married Richard Carl Zintek on Nov. 6, 1954, at Our Savior's Lutheran Church, in Clarkston. They had a daughter, Janice Rae, and a son, Richard William, and remodeled a home in Lewiston, where they lived for several years. Her husband's work took them to Great Falls, Mont., and then to Reno in 1963, where he continues to reside in the home they built there. Janet started working at Washoe Medical Center in Reno within a few days of arriving.

She went back to school and received her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Nevada, Reno, in 1985, and was given the opportunity to travel to Ireland with a group including the professor of the School of Nursing at the University of Nevada, Reno. They were there for 28 days and studied the methods of psychiatric care for the incarcerated. Before returning home, she was able to visit her brother and his family in England while he was stationed there with the U.S. Air Force. Janet worked for the state of Nevada and Washoe County, helping the mentally ill as a psychiatric nurse for the incarcerated. After retirement in 2001, she became president of the Nevada State Nurses Association from 2001 to 2004. She also volunteered her time to many other organizations and charities. Janet loved to help others - it gave her great joy. She also loved to cook and always tried to have a small vegetable garden.

Janet was able to make three trips to Germany. One of them, accompanied by her sister, Judy, was a three-week trip sponsored by Elderhostel. Another trip enabled her to visit the area from which her Flomer ancestors originated. She traveled to Hong Kong before it was transferred from Britain to China.

Janet and her husband were awarded a trip to England because of his electrical contracting business purchasing a certain volume of materials, and also made trips to Hawaii and spent many happy winters in Yuma, Ariz., after they retired.

She attended many classes through the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (Olli) at the University of Nevada, Reno. Janet thrived on learning new things. She made many friends wherever she went and especially enjoyed spending time with them.

She was preceded in death by her father in 1960; her mother; and her daughter, Janice Rae, in 2003. She is survived by her husband, Richard Carl Zintek; her son, Richard William (Janet Mary) Zintek of Grayland, Wash.; brother William A. (Tanna) Flomer of Tucson, Ariz.; sisters Judith L. (Raymond F.) Zoellick of Mountlake Terrace, Wash., and Kristina K. (Denis K.) Hackwith of Lewiston; and many nieces and nephews.

Services will be a celebration of her life at 2:30 p.m. June 8, 2018, at the Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Fernley, Nev.