Jane L. Mossey, wife of de- ceased Hillsdale College trustee Donald R. Mossey, passed away July 9, 2012. She was 82 years
oldJ.ane Mossey, who, with her husband, donated the grant for the campus library, attended Hillsdale College from 1948 to 1952. She was a member of both the Chi Omega and Sigma Alpha Iota sororities.
“Jane was a leader in our col- lege community from the minute she set foot on campus until the day she died,” Hillsdale College President Larry Arnn said. “I personally benefited from those qualities.”
She cheered on sports teams as a member of the cheerleading
squad. But Arnn said she was most remembered for how she always looked after everyone at parties.
Hillsdale College graduate Elli Leutheuser ‘51 said Jane Mossey was dedicated to her family and was a strong partner with her late husband. Leutheus- er said her smile was beautiful and contributed to her excellence as a hostess.
Leutheuser also said Donald Mossey gave his future wife his fraternity pin in 1951, and they were married shortly after her graduation from Hillsdale.
“If Don personified freedom, Jane did the same for love,” Arnn said. “She had all the qualities in grace, in judgment, in strength that makes it pos- sible for a woman to conceive
and bear and raise a family, for a woman to stand by a man of ambition and assertiveness, for a woman to build a world around her family that is decent and good.”
The husband and wife remained active in their alma mater, and after their young son died in a boating accident, they decided to donate a library to the college.
“They wanted to honor his memory,” Arnn said. “Being alumni, they knew we needed a library. The library came to be the memory.”
Jane Mossey continued to visit the school two or three times a year, said Dan Knoch, Hillsdale College Head Librar- ian. He said the Mossey’s visited often, and she continued to visit
in the years after his passing. She served as president of the
women’s commissioner’s sale and attended Center for Con- structive Alternative lectures.
“She did what mothers do,” Arnn said. “The family gives rise and is the foundation of all other communities, but also it depends upon them for its own well being. She gave her life for others, and by doing this she made them all better.”
Jane Mossey is survived by her three children: Merril McCarthy and husband Den- nis; Mark Mossey and his wife Kathy; and Melanie Warren and her husband Charlie. She is also survived by her six grandchil- dren: Patrick, Chelsea, Sean, Christopher, Eric, and Alex.
