Janice Catherine Wollinger died on Saturday, April 4, 2026. She was born in Janesville, Wis., to James and Ella (Keyes) Fox on April 21, 1935.
Janice married George Wollinger in 1956 at St. William Catholic Church in Janesville. She worked hard all day, every day on their farm outside of Evansville. She had exceptional wit and enjoyed sharing it with her 40 nieces and nephews, their children, and every friend she ever met. Janice sent cards that often contained a $2 bill and her classic wisdom, but she was just warming up on the nieces and nephews. Once her first grandchild arrived she became “Pinki,” and that is when her comic genius kicked into overdrive. She expressed her love through games, songs, hungry washcloths, ice cream cones, mud pies, letters, clever t-shirts, voicemails, and videos. Pinki made her debut on Spotify two months ago. She constantly gave herself to the grandkids. She could fill their mouths with laughter and their hearts with joy. Her imagination was always spinning and they could barely keep up. They are left to carry this great treasure of boundless love and sparkling wit to their family and friends.
Her faith was also important to her. Long car trips were measured in “MPR” – she could get “30 Miles Per Rosary” with the Chaplet of Divine Mercy thrown in for good measure. She had great empathy and compassion for the underprivileged and the disadvantaged. One of her greatest gifts was her ability to love; it just came naturally to her.
She is survived by her daughter, Julie Hermanson; sons, Jim, Joe, and George (Kimberly) Wollinger; son-in-law, Howard (Karen) Smolin; grandchildren, Chad (Alex) Hermanson, Kari (Hussain Ali) Hermanson, Jackson (Julia) Hermanson, Duke (Brooklynn) Smolin, Jacob Wollinger, Ellen (Nick Bartz) Wollinger, and Brandon and Brice Pohlman; great-grandchildren, Tyler, Nadine, and Damon Hermanson, Bennett and Lincoln Smolin, Sabastian, Cameron, Carson, and Knox Pohlman; and in-laws, Delores (John) Hein, Don Wollinger, and Kathy (Doug) Johnson.
She was preceded in death by her parents; daughter, Jackie; son-in-law, Dean Hermanson; husband, George; brothers, Richard (Virginia) Fox, Tom Fox, Joe (Mary) Fox, and Jim (MaryJo) Fox; in-laws Agnes Neal, Bob and Helen Bennett, Mary Ann Baumann, and Karolyn Wollinger; and nephews Todd Draeving, Benjamin Neal, and Jimmy Fox.
A mass of Christian burial took place on Thursday, April 9, at 11 a.m. at St. Paul Catholic Church in Evansville with a visitation on Wednesday, April 8 from 4 to 6 p.m. at Ward-Hurtley Funeral Home in Evansville. Committal followed at Holy Cross Cemetery in Evansville.
As Pinki would say, “See you in the movies!”