Obituary of Janet Kahrer TeBrake

Bangor & New Castle, PA--Janet (Kahrer) TeBrake, 69, passed away after a brief illness on Dec. 26, 2016, at a Bangor hospital. She was born Nov. 12, 1947, in New Castle, PA, the daughter of Charles and Jeanette (Bulisco) Kahrer. Janet was a 1965 graduate of New Castle High School and received her BA in 1970 from Youngstown State University in Ohio. While working full time for Mahoning County Social Services (Ohio), she completed her Masters degree in history at Youngstown (1978). She moved to Maine in 1978 to pursue further graduate work at the University of Maine (Orono), and finished her Ph.D. in modern Irish and British History in 1984. Janet spent most of her adult life as a dedicated college-level teacher and researcher. After a brief stint in the Colby College department of history (1984), Janet taught at Bangor Community College from 1984 to 1991. From 1991 until her retirement in 2013 she was a member of the history faculty at the Unversity of Maine, where she played a significant role in teaching the Western Civilization sequence as well as advanced undergraduate courses in Irish, British, 19th-Century European, and Women's History, as well as occasional graduate readings courses on these same topics. In addition, she was a dedicated undergraduate advisor who was willing to take on far more students than anyone else and was proud of the fact that she had accumulated a thick file of notes and letters from former students thanking her for the role she played in their success. Besides teaching, Janet was passionate about her cats and about the welfare of pets in general. She loved to travel and did so frequently. She was an accomplished cook who always was willing to try something new. She was also an avid reader of history, mysteries and historical fiction. She was predeceased by father Charles. Janet is survived by husband William TeBrake of Bangor, ME; mother Jeanette of New Castle, PA; sisters Susan Burns of New Castle, PA, Debi Clark and husband Hal of New Castle, PA; brother Chas Kahrer and wife Karen of New Castle, PA; nephews David and Adam Kahrer of New Castle, PA. A remembrance and celebration of Janet's life will held 1 PM Saturday, April 8, 2017 at Kiley & Foley Funeral Service, 299 Union St., Bangor and a time of friendship and continued celebration will be immediately afterward at the Penobscot Room of Sea Dog Brewing Co, 26 Front St., Bangor. Donations in her memory may be made to the Bangor Humane Society, 693 Mt. Hope Ave., Bangor, ME 04401 or the New Castle Public Library, 207 East North St., New Castle, PA 16101. Messages and memories may be shared with her family at kileyandfoley.com