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Jane Fehrenbacher, 77, of Pasadena, passed away peacefully February 21, 2021 in her home, surrounded by her family. Born July 27, 1943 in Danville, Virginia to loving parents Ralph and Curtis Lang, Jane spent her childhood in Raleigh, North Carolina where she was an accomplished dancer and longtime student of classical ballet. With an offer to study at American Ballet Theatre's Summer Intensive program, Jane chose the Liberal Arts path, pursuing study at Duke University where she majored in English and was a member of the Kappa Delta sorority. Post college, Jane's remarkable and adventurous life would see her traveling across Europe in a VW van, residing in Bangkok, Thailand during the war in Vietnam, and moving to San Francisco in the summer of 1969, before eventually settling in Pasadena in the 1970's. For nearly twenty years, Jane enjoyed working for the South Pasadena Design and Architecture firm Stamps and Stamps, where she was immersed in her love of the decorative arts. While a member of the Pasadena Junior Philharmonic Committee, Jane held a tenure as chairwoman of the Pasadena Showcase House. She was also a longtime member of the Valley Hunt Club and the Junior League of Pasadena. Jane's lifelong love of British culture and antiquity was beautifully reflected in her passion for interior design and collecting. Traveling to Great Britain to attend antique fairs and auctions was one of her ultimate joys; a true Anglophile, she was lucky to make many such trips over her lifetime, together with both family and dear friends. A thoughtful and prodigious reader, Jane's ideal place was at home with a good book, in the company of family. Jane's warm grace and generous spirit shone inimitably through all she did, making everything she touched extraordinary, heartfelt and memorable. Her humor and wit, her independence and elegance were all uniquely hers - both inspiring and endearing. Loving mother, caring grandmother, loyal sister, thoughtful friend, the consummate hostess: Jane possessed the unique skill of making so many feel loved distinctively. Beloved wife, mother, grandmother, sister, friend and Pasadena resident of almost 50 years, Jane is survived by her husband John 'Joe' Fehrenbacher and sister Leigh Baum, as well as children Earl 'Chip' Brian III, Jennifer Brian, Annie Fehrenbacher, Matt Fehrenbacher and Claire McMillan. Jane's love and beautiful image will be carried on by her seven beloved grandchildren Mac, Drew, Winn, Flora, Will, Bo and Alfie. A Celebration of Life for Jane will be held this summer, once Covid-19 restrictions have abated. https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/pasadenastarnews/obituary.aspx?n=jane-fehrenbacher&pid=197953080
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Charles Styron
I remember Jane like it was yesterday. She was my first serious girlfriend, and we saw each other for a good part of the 11th Grade (as I recall). She was unusually bright and was a marvelous dancer. She always looked her best, no matter what the occasion, and I was smitten with her for a good while. Her father, Ralph, was the golf pro at the Carolina Country Club, and my own father used to play golf with him frequently. Sometimes I would walk around the course with them when they played together. For my own activities at the "Club," I spent a fair amount of time admiring Jane by the pool in the summertime--along with all of the other guys. Jane was a very stylish dresser, too, and I got it into my mind that the only Christmas gift she might appreciate from me was a white cashmere sweater. Cashmere was the rage in those days. As I recall, however, she took the gift "quite in stride," appreciative but not overly impressed. So much for my savoir! Long after Jane and I parted ways, I learned that she had always had a special relationship with her next door neighbor, Earl Brian, whom she later married. A few years after Jane and Earl divorced, in the summer of 1982, I visited her at the beach in North Carolina for a long weekend and we had a marvelous reunion. (I was mightily impressed with the spirit of her young daughter, Jennifer, at the time.) Jane and I corresponded a bit after that visit and we saw each other once more in Boston before she met her second husband, John Fehrenbacher, in California. I remember learning and recording Ravel's Menuet from Tombeau de Couperin during this period and sending it to her as a final gift--my only recording (for good reason). I tried to entice her to come to our reunions on at least two occasions, but California was too far away. I remember her like it was yesterday.