Janet K Karlesky

Janet Kaye Karlesky, née MacIntosh, of Grand Rapids, Michigan, went to be with the Lord on February 24, 2026 surrounded by family at Trillium Woods (Faith Hospice).

Jan was born on January 3, 1941, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the daughter of Vernon MacIntosh and Lillian Hagemann, née Buskirk. Most of Jan’s 85 years were lived in Jackson County. She resided in the same home in Spring Arbor, Michigan for over 60 years. Jan and her husband John relocated to Grand Rapids in early 2025 to be near the support of family.

Jan graduated from Jackson High School in 1959. She completed an Associate Degree in Nursing at Jackson Community College in 1983 and went on to meet the requirements to become a Registered Nurse.

Jan married Delma Videto in 1959. They met and married as high school sweethearts while Jan was still in high school. Jan and Delma had two children. Their eldest child is their daughter Kendall Diemer who was followed by their son Steven Videto. Jan and Delma divorced in the first half of the 1970s. Delma passed away in 2015.

John Karlesky and Jan met as employees of Commonwealth and Associates in Jackson, Michigan. They wed in 1975 and were married for 50 years. John tells the story of a square dance while courting where Jan “looked so good” that he “made mistakes” on the dance floor. They have one child, a son, Dr. Michael Karlesky.

Jan had great love for her 5 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren that came into the world through her 3 children and their spouses. She lavished them with gifts, frequently with tags still attached so they could be easily exchanged at a future hunt for deals.

Jan worked a variety of jobs over her lifetime. She enjoyed her work at Vermeulen’s Furniture in Jackson and furnished some of her home with pieces she purchased with her employee discount. After going back to school and becoming a Registered Nurse, Jan worked for 27 years at W.A. Foote Memorial Hospital (now Henry Ford Jackson). She retired in 2010. She spent nearly her entire tenure as a nurse working in postpartum. She especially enjoyed working with the newborns in the nursery.

Having given her heart to Jesus in her early adulthood, Jan became a longtime member first of Ganson Street Baptist Church and then New Covenant Living Church in Jackson.

She joined her husband John as members of ecumenical Morningstar Christian Fellowship and remained connected to this group until her advancing years prevented it.

She and John made the trip to Jackson from Grand Rapids in September of last year to celebrate the 50th anniversary of this community. Jan supported numerous ministries over the decades as well as their charitable work.

Jan had a lifelong love of animals. She grew up with horses and kept various pets, including a beloved boxer, Gypsy. Jan had at least 3 cats, two named Kitty (her father had a dog named Dog) and one named Booger. If she were ever near horses she would offer her hand and talk to them at length, often addressing them as “puppy horses.”

Certain animals could receive the honorific of “puppy” from Jan while others could not. The rules on this were never clear. She ultimately chose a career in human healthcare but daydreamed of life as a veterinarian.

A love of travel played out over decades. In Jan’s younger years this entailed long family car trips all over the lower 48 states and Canada. Snacks were always to be found stowed away in a pile of bags and pillows in the backseat. Eventually she graduated to airliners, cruiseliners, and international travel visiting Hawaii, Alaska, Mexico, France, England, Wales, and Scotland. Her trip to Scotland was especially meaningful because of her Scottish heritage, and she did indeed eat actual haggis. Jan never spoke the local language in foreign countries, but made do as she would. She once ordered milk in a Paris restaurant by pantomiming pulling on a cow’s udders. Her trips were documented with an infinite number of camcorder cassettes and rolls of film.

If you knew Jan you knew her to have colorful language. She was not shy in inventing new words, phrases, and pronunciations. If something could be “brand new”, it could also be washed to become “brand clean.” A Mexican dish at a county fair food truck was a “Fuh-jeeta.” She was capable of transforming any innocent phrase into a threat to keep her children in line. On occasion Jan would come to laugh so hard that she fell absolutely silent while simply bobbing up and down.

Jan is survived by her husband John Karlesky of Grand Rapids, Michigan; her sister Suzanne Burt of Sterling, Michigan; her step-sister Jeannie Lewis (Gary) of Jackson, Michigan; her daughter Kendall Diemer (Jerry Crofton) of Phoenix, Arizona; her son Steven Videto (Kris) currently traveling the country; and her son Michael Karlesky (Jessica) of Grand Rapids, Michigan; her five grandchildren Mitchel Diemer (Parikshaya), Kevin Diemer (Christine), Christofer Videto (Kimi), and twins, Emmy and Aiden Karlesky; and her 7 great grandchildren Brighton Diemer, Sterling Diemer, Rafy Hijazi, Ramy Hijazi, Norah Diemer, Logan Videto, and Joshua Diemer.

Jan was preceded in death by her brother James MacIntosh and her beloved Aunt Marian Thompson.

Visitation will be held on Monday, March 2, 2026 at Watson Funeral Chapel - 2590 Spring Arbor Road, Jackson at 10:00am until the time of service beginning at 11:00am.  

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