Janet Francis Filling — a longtime director of the American Red Cross Westport chapter, who went on to hold important positions at the state and national levels — died peacefully at her home on February 12. She was 91.
A New York native who cherished her Flag Day birthday, Janet graduated from Trinity College in Washington, DC.
She began her advertising career during Madison Avenue’s heyday. She married Jim Filling in 1963, and had a son, Greg. The family moved to Westport, which became Janet’s home for nearly 40 years.
Janet Filling
She built a wide circle of friends and professional relationships, through her work in education, publishing and advertising at organizations throughout Fairfield County, and her membership in the Weston Field Club.
Janet found her true calling when she joined the Westport-Weston Chapter of the American Red Cross, eventually serving as its executive director. She combined a deep commitment to community service with a great ability to bring people together through warmth, loyalty and positive energy.
She was a tireless advocate for the Westport-Weston community and took great pride in supporting its residents and institutions.
Janet was a devoted caregiver to Jim during his struggle with Parkinson’s disease, before his death in 1996.
She continued her Red Cross leadership for another decade, becoming involved at the state and national levels and participating in service trips to China and Honduras.
After retiring Janet returned to Manhattan for 7 years, embracing the city’s many offerings and remaining a constant, loving presence in her grandchildren’s early lives.
Janet moved back to Westport in 2013, and into memory care 10 years later. She remained deeply connected to and engaged, attending social, cultural and family events. She made frequent visits to friends in New York, Cape Cod and Italy, and continued to enjoy travel with her family throughout Europe, Central America and the Caribbean.
Despite the challenges of dementia in her final years, Janet maintained a spirit of gratitude and joy.
She is survived by her son Greg (Kristin), grandchildren Jessie and Ryan, sister Charlotte Lent, and niece Diane Lent-Tucker. In addition to her husband, she was predeceased by her sisters Barbara and Muriel Francis.
A memorial service will be held later in the spring. Click here to be notified of details.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in her memory to the American Red Cross.
It was a privilege to know Janet. She was a force for good. I was glad to be part of the Westport nonprofit community when she was leading the local Red Cross. We worked together well. She was secure in her Catholic faith and always wanted to find new ways to unite the religious community to foster dialogue and growth.
Back in the early 2000s, I worked for a communications firm in downtown Westport, a welcome relief from years of commuting to NYC. My office was near the local Red Cross on Church Lane. Every few months, I’d run into Janet. Without fail she’d offer a warm hug and big smile as we chatted about our families. She was at the center of Westport’s caring community and a dear friend to so many. Peace and love to Greg, Kristin and the grandkids.
Working with Janet was a blessing. Forever helpful, forever loving and humble, and forever well-informed. She and I helped Ruth Snyder publish the official biography of Ruth Steinkraus-Cohen back in the day. She also assisted me and my team in hosting foreign visitors to shadow American experts to see how our various socio-economic systems work from within. Our organization, currently the UNA-USA of Southern CT, was originally formed by RSC with help from Eleanor Roosevelt and called the International Visitors Committee of Connecticut. It made Westport the defacto national center for welcoming both UN and US State Dept. program visitors for the nation, and Janet (including her connections with the Red Cross) was a key player in that. In fact, the Westport IVC was the only non-profit accredited simultaneously by both the UN and the State Dept. for card-carrying official IDs. The penultimate program that Janet was a part of was the arrival of 13 Israelis and Palestinians for a two-day bridge-building workshop at which many tears flowed. Janet was an expert at both building and repairing such bridges. This is my farewell thank you to a shining light of a sort that becomes rarer day by day.