Obituary: Josephine (TRAXLER) Kevane (1927-2019)
Josephine passed away on March 10, in Los Angeles, California. Josephine, or Dodi as she was known to friends and family, was born in Janesville on November 16, 1927 to Edith and Henry Traxler, Janesville’s first City Manager. After graduating from Janesville High School and University of Wisconsin-Madison, she joined the U.S. Foreign Service as an administrative assistant in posts including Germany and Martinique. The family relocated to Los Angeles after her father’s retirement, where she met and in February 1960 married Donald Kevane, of Storm Lake, Iowa, then an accountant at Arthur Andersen. Don and Dodi moved to Milan, Rome and then San Juan, Puerto Rico, which they eventually made their permanent home. She was devoted to her eight children: Henry (San Francisco), Michael (San Jose), Bridget (Bozeman, MT), Timothy (New York), Susanna (Los Angeles), David (Oakland), Jean-Sydney (Los Angeles) and Klara (San Francisco). In between raising a family, Don and Dodi played lots of tennis and bridge, took trips and made life-long friendships on the island. Her love for books led her to earn a Master’s Degree in English Literature, followed by a teaching position at University of Sacred Heart (P.R.). After splitting time in Los Angeles in the 2000s, Don and Dodi moved there permanently in 2016. Dodi’s beloved brother, Sydney, passed away in Los Angeles in 1980. Mom was so proud of her father and made sure all her kids knew about his Depression-era stewardship of the city. In addition to her children, she is survived by fourteen grandchildren. She will be missed. Memories are welcome and may be registered at dignitymemorial.com.
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