Jeanne Elaine Cowger (nee Olesky)

Jeanne Elaine Cowger of Mesa, AZ, was called to her eternal home on May 1, 2026 at age 73. Jeanne was born to John and Rose Olesky on October 6, 1952 in Erie, PA. As a child, the family moved to northeast Illinois. This is where Jeanne grew into the independent, free-thinking, candid, passionate, honest, and faith-filled woman her friends and family are proud to know. Jeanne met the love of her life 37 years ago after placing a newspaper ad looking for companionship. Dale answered that ad and they blended their families in Holy Matrimony in 1990. 

In addition to her role as wife and mother, Jeanne had a fulfilling career at Abbott Laboratories for 23 years. She started as a key punch operator and retired as a computer programmer analyst. However, her real passion was sharing her Christian faith through participation and even leading Bible studies in the churches she attended and the communities she lived in. Jeanne fought the good fight against breast cancer two times in the span of a decade. She joins her parents (John and Rose) and a grandson (Jacob Cowger) in Heaven. She is survived by her devoted husband, Dale; two children: Anthony (Michelle) Hill and Elizabeth (Enrique) Hill; four step-children: Christine Taylor, Jennifer (Shawn) O’Brien, Dana (Christopher) England, and David (Tiffany) Cowger; 13 grandchildren: Kaylee, Eliana, Violet, Alexander, Ivy, Melanie, Rebecca, Alayna, Laurel, Allyson, David, Devon, and Ean; and one great-grandchild: Amira. Also surviving are three brothers: Philip Olesky (Lina), John “Jack” Olesky, and Raymond Olesky (Eugenia); one sister, Barbara Amos (David); a niece, Heather Martinez; and three nephews: Warren, Eugene, and Liam.

A memorial service will be held in Jeanne’s honor on May 28 at 2 pm at the Legacy Funeral Home-Rose Chapel in Mesa, AZ. She will be laid to rest at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Elwood, IL on June 5, 2026 at 9:30 am. The family expresses their deepest gratitude to the caring and compassionate staff of Noble Hospice for their excellent care and support to Jeanne and Dale in her last weeks of life. Memorials to honor her life can be made to Samaritan’s Purse. May family and friends find comfort in one of Jeanne’s favorite phrases, “Faith is having the courage to let God have control."

” Revelation 21:4: "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away."