Jane’s life of endless love, profound care and unending commitment to others was a deeply meaningful and inspiring gift to us all . . .
~Richard
Jane’s life spanned a wide range of commitments and endeavours. They were all were part of her life of international service, engaging with people from many different cultures.
She had three careers – working for global human rights, being a professional nurse and promoting health and well-being through exercise.
She was widely respected for her quiet dignity, her inner strength and her delightful kindness and warmth towards others.
Jane and Richard were together for 50 years. For her 45th birthday in 1993, he made this T-shirt which gave a vivid summary of her life up to that point. Excerpts from the T-shirt are reproduced below the photo, and you can also click on the photo to enlarge it (as you can with all the photos on this page):
These excerpts from the T-shirt tell the first part of Jane’s life story:
“I was born on 7 September 1948. In the Zodiac I’m a Virgo and in the Chinese calendar I’m a Rat. My father, George Ward, met my mother, a beautiful Englishwoman named Mary Buchanan, when he was still in the US Air Force during WWII. I was born in Chester, Pennsylvania, grew up in Everett, Washington State, on the west coast of America and then came to England when I was 11 with my mother, my brother Arthur and sister Sarah.
“We lived in Princes Risborough until I went to university at Cambridge where I studied Russian and German at Newnham College. For 17 years I worked for Amnesty International – first as their Europe Researcher, then in the Secretary General’s Office coordinating plans and international meetings. My life and work have taken me to countries in the Americas, Asia, Europe and the Middle East, including overland to India and the Himalayas through Iran and Afghanistan – also Egypt and recent trips to China and Hong Kong.
“When I was 41 I changed career, spent 3 years as a student nurse and qualified as a State Registered Nurse. I’m now at St. Bartholomew’s hospital. While doing that I took the Clare Maxwell-Hudson course in massage therapy and obtained the International Therapy Examinational Council Diploma in Anatomy, Physiology and Body Massage.
“I’ve been a vegetarian for nearly 20 years, love to cook, can recite Lermontov poetry, if asked, and go regularly to Sequinpark gym. Since 1985 I have been a student of Tai Chi Chuan and have practiced Zhan Zhuang Chi Kung under Master Lam Kam Chuen.”
A pioneering initiative
After her career in nursing, Jane went on to coordinate the pioneering “Prescription for Exercise” initiative introduced into health care in London’s Islington Council. Doctors, working in conjunction with fitness centres, were able to prescribe exercise programs for their patients. With her background in nursing and being known as a Tai Chi instructor, Jane was hired to develop and manage the new initiative.
This led to her third career focussing on professional exercise programs, teaching both Tai Chi and Strength and Conditioning classes for numerous leisure and community centres. She was also a consultant to the UK’s national Later Life Training programme. Through these initiatives, as well as her online classes, she brought the benefits of adapted Tai Chi and other exercise systems to hundreds of people, many in their senior years. As one of her students said, “Jane was a beacon of light and strength, bringing inspiration and encouragement to us all.”
Protecting human rights worldwide
Through all these years, Jane maintained her deep commitment to the protection of human rights worldwide. She was a long-time member of her local Amnesty International Islington and Hackney Group, and a staunch supporter of and donor to numerous organizations, including Freedom from Torture (originally the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture). She featured front and centre (in her blue coat, bright blue scarf and pink bag) at this demonstration in London’s Trafalgar Square against torture during Donald Trump’s visit to London in 2019.
She also supported the work of Liberty, The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants, Peace Direct, Action Aid, Oxfam, War on Want, Médecins Sans Frontiers and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (the UN Refugee Agency).
From Nepal to London – the final journey
In the Spring of 2023, Jane and Richard attended a meditation retreat in Nepal – and also took part in the “Himalayan Gathering” hosted by Amnesty International Nepal, featured on the home page of this website.
At the end of their retreat, Jane was suddenly taken ill and had to have emergency surgery in Kathmandu to remove a tumour from her brain.
“This was completely startling,” said Richard in a message to their many friends and associates. “When, after two weeks of post-surgery recovery in hospital, we got the ‘fit to fly’ all-clear, we returned to London where Jane went on a course of immunotherapy. This appeared to be working well, but as a side-effect her liver became inflamed – likely a result of the heightened effect of the treatment on her immune system.
“This came to a head on Wednesday 8 November when she was taken by ambulance to the Emergency Department of The Royal Free Hospital in London suffering from septic shock. A couple of days later, she was moved into the Intensive Care Unit. The medical staff were wonderful throughout. After three days in ICU, they moved her to a ward for palliative care where I could be with her 24 hours a day.
“This was a precious time for us and we spent much of it together doing our Buddhist practices that support the mind and heart.
“Early on the morning of Saturday 18 November, around 3:00am, I was awakened by the night nurse who told me that Jane had taken her last breath. After the trauma she had been through, she was now completely peaceful. In the stillness of the early morning, I was able to sit with her to do the extended practices that support a person through the various stages of dying. It is so wonderful that the person’s sense of hearing is the last to go and the consciousness is still present for some time after the body’s functions have ceased.
“After our practice was over, the nurses cleaned her very tenderly and wrapped her. I thanked them and bowed to them.
“Jane wanted to continue her life of service to others after her death by requesting that her body be donated to medical science for the training of the next generation of doctors. We succeeded in accomplishing this, so there will be no funeral service.
“I would have liked to let everyone know earlier, but during this period I was also involved in supporting the other members of Jane’s family, following the death of her brother only a few weeks earlier.
“For the moment, I am focussing on letting you and others know what has happened, and that our beloved Jane is at peace.”
Chinese New Year – Celebrating Jane
Jane always made a point of celebrating the Chinese New Year in her classes. She asked everyone to wear red and she spent the week in her silk Chinese top, serving tea and traditional snacks, as well as explaining the Chinese Zodiac and what to watch out for in each coming year!
This year (2024) over the first week of the Chinese New Year, Monday 12 February through to Friday 16 February, we will be having online and in-person gatherings to welcome the Year of the Dragon and to celebrate Jane and the many gifts she brought to everyone who knew her, learned from her and were inspired by her.