Everyone loves summer. We all look forward to it. Long warm days and clear starry nights. Swimming and ice cream. Campfires and fireflies. We all look forward to it after a long cold winter.

But no one ever expects any summer to be their last. No one ever wakes up on Memorial Day and says to themselves, “Gee, this will be the last summer I will ever enjoy”. We don’t like to think about summers in terms of numbers. But what if I gave you the exact number of summers you will get to enjoy before you leave this world? What if you are fifty years old, and I said, “You have 24 summers left”? Would you look at it differently? Would you rethink how you spend your time, and who you spend it with?

On Thursday July 23rd 2026, in the middle of her 82nd summer, our mom, Janet G.Farmer, passed from this existence into the arms of God and her family, on a beautiful sunny summer afternoon, with people walking around outside, eating lunch, making phone calls and getting on with the business of the day, unaware and unaffected by the tragedy that was befalling the Hall, Butler and Eichner families in the ICU of Hartford Hospital.

Born to Joseph and Rose (Ruschak) Eichner on April 4th, 1944, our mom was a member of a large and proud Czech family. Her siblings were much older than her, and so she was watched out for and taken care of. She was a daddy’s girl, and many times we heard stories of when Grampa Joe would come home from work at Pratt and Whitney, and she would sit with him and eat cold Rossler’s hot dogs dipped in mustard with him. Sometimes, she did that on warm, sunny summer days.

She graduated from E.O Smith High School in June 1962, on another warm sunny day. She spent the next thirty plus years working both there and as an administrative assistant in the anthropology department of UConn in Mansfield. In reality, she ran the place. She was detail-oriented and those professors would not have been able to do what they did without her.

In 1968 she married Gerald Hall of South Willington. A daughter, Maryjane, came along in 1969, followed by a son, Gerald Jr., in 1972. They made their life in Willington, raising their kids on a small farm, which taught them responsibility. The kids also drove her nuts sometimes. She would often get phone calls from them at work because they were arguing about something and both wanted to gain a tactical advantage by being the first to blame the other one. However, she knew better. Both kids were equally guilty. She would say “You’re giving me grey hairs”. And we gave her many.

Mom was very devoted to, and very protective of, her family. She was the youngest of 8 siblings. The others (brothers Joe, Frank and Dan and sisters Sylvia, Eleanor,Phyllis and Josephine) all preceded her in death. And we can only imagine what heaven is going to be like with the Eichner sisters doing their thing. God may already be regretting his decision. Aunt Sidge, Aunt El, Aunt Phyl, Aunt Jo, Uncle Pep, Uncle Frank and Uncle Danny, along with mom, may be too much to handle. But that’s his problem now.

Mom was all about family. She loved her kids and grandkids and would do anything for them. In all, she left four grandchildren to carry on her legacy: Shane, Erika, Seth and Jake. And carry on they will. She was so proud of them and the adults they had become. And there is no doubt they will proudly use what she taught them – grit, determination, resilience and chutzpa – as they go through their lives. They loved their nonny, and I’m sure they will continue to make her proud.

She held an especially special place in her heart for her son-in-law, Tim, affectionately known as “her Timmy B”. Tim treated her like he treated his own mom, doing anything and everything for her, from building her a new deck to bringing in her groceries. She loved him like her own son, and he loved her like a mother. We will be eternally grateful for all of his love and support for her everyday of her life.

Mom had a singular personality. She loved to terrorize people on her mobility scooter. She was known to flash GTA-style gang-signs. And she always, always had to win the argument and have the last word. Many people made the mistake of testing mom’s resolve, and they found out very quickly that in a battle of wits and wills, they were woefully unarmed.

The last six years of her life were spent in Ohio with her husband, Harry “Buck” Farmer, a Vietnam Veteran and man of God. As an ordained minister, it was Buck who gave mom her last rites in the hospital and held her hand as she slipped away. But, ever the protective mom, just before she passed, Buck leaned into her as she said the words, “Take care of my babies”.

Her passing has left a giant hole inside of us all, one that with time will heal, but the scars of which will never fully disappear. She was our mom, our rock, our provider and protector, and this life will be a little less bearable without her. But with faith in God, we understand that this is not goodbye. It’s “Until We Meet Again”. So mom, please know that we love you, we miss you immensely, and we will do our best to live our lives with the values that you instilled in us. We love you mom. Say hi to dad and all the aunts and uncles for us, enjoy your new pain-free life, and try not to cause too much trouble up there. Until we meet again.  A graveside service will be held at 10:30am on Friday, July 31.2026 at St. Mary Cemetery, Rte. 31 Coventry, CT.