Jenny Moore-Jansen - a fascination with the human body

The human body is a fascinating creation, the way everything works together, what happens when something goes wrong. For Jenny Moore-Jansen, that fascination has guided her life.

Her understanding of anatomy tells her just which muscles need extra work when she’s giving someone a massage. It also helps her recognize the ravages of disease on the body she is preparing to embalm.

Jenny Moore-Jansen

Jenny is a certified massage therapist. She plans to take her national certification test this summer, which will expand where she can do massages. She also will graduate in May with a degree in mortuary science from Kansas City Kansas Community College.

The path Jenny has taken thus far is an interesting one. “I had planned to be a professional gymnast,” she said. She had to give up that dream after 18 years of gymnastics when her knee gave out. “Then I was going to be a coroner,” she said. “I wanted to do autopsies. I’ve always been interested in the human body and how it works.”

When she looked into what it would take to become a coroner, she discovered she would have to endure something like 15 years of med school, because being a coroner is more specialized. “But I thought, I want to have a family. I want to have a life. What can I do,” she said.

   

Jenny started looking into the possibility of being a funeral director, talking to people who were in the field, asking them what they thought of the industry. She already had a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice, and had taken a gross anatomy class during the program, so she had some experience with dissecting bodies.

During this time, she became more acquainted with death on a personal level. She lost three grandparents in a year and a half. Then one Sunday she learned about murder when a man was shot and killed in the narthex of her church in Wichita while she was sitting in the sanctuary, next to the man’s wife, listening to prelude music.

Jenny took these experiences to heart, realizing there was much more to death than dying. Getting her degree has taught her about the funeral industry, meeting and dealing with families, products such as caskets and burial containers, embalming, restorative art, anatomy, and counseling. After graduation, she hopes to get an apprentice funeral director position at Johnson County Chapel and Memorial Gardens, where she presently works under an assistant funeral director license as the funeral administrative assistant. “I help out with visitation,” she said. “I help the funeral directors with services. I can lead a graveside service or committal service. But I can’t meet with the family on my own yet.”

Maybe you have a preconceived idea of what a funeral director looks like, or how one acts. If so, meet Jenny. She has a big mega-watt smile, a great sense of humor, and doesn’t take herself seriously. For example, ask her what movies she likes, and she’ll laugh even before she gets the words out, knowing what the reaction will be. “I love horror movies,” she said. “’Silence of the Lambs’ is my favorite.”

Working jigsaw puzzles is one of her favorite hobbies, but not those puny 500-piece things. “I’m doing a 32,000-piece puzzle,” she said. “It’s six feet by 17 feet. I’ve done two sections and have six to go. Each section has a little over 4,000 pieces.”

Jenny’s response is immediate when asked what she thinks she will bring to the funeral industry. “Empathy and patience,” she said. Those are especially important gifts in helping loved ones of the deceased. “Someone needs to be there for that person,” Jenny said, “and if I can explain to them how death happens, if I can make someone more comfortable with that, then that’s wonderful.”

“The most difficult situations involve death of a child and death from a murder,” Jenny said. “It’s traumatic for families. They’re not expecting that. I’m helping them through the process of a funeral. The grieving process is in stages. It may take two to three years; it may take six months.”

From Jenny’s perspective, the recent classes offered at Holy Cross on the “End Matters” of life were much appreciated. “I do think it’s beneficial,” Jenny said. “It starts people thinking about what they want, and what they don’t want.”

Jenny looks forward to the day when she can be a funeral director. It is her hope that she can bring joy somehow to grieving families, maybe by helping them understand a little bit more about death. And the physical work is rewarding too. “I’ve always looked at the human body as miraculous,” Jenny said, “and this confirms that.”

Stephen and Kristin Graue - local winemakers

Stephen and Kristin Graue’s odyssey into the art of winemaking came about in part because of a horse.

When Stephen was looking into where to stable the horse he planned to buy for his daughter, his wife, Kristin, suggested they buy land instead. So the couple bought 32 acres in Louisburg, Kansas, an idyllic spot in which to build a house, let a horse run, and live happily ever after.

Kristin and Stephen Graue

But, Stephen’s daughter lost interest as soon as they bought the horse. The horse turned out to be claustrophobic and wouldn’t stay in the barn they built. Kristin designed a house for them to live in on the new property, but a microburst blew it down when it was half built. They tried growing pecan trees on the land but they all froze.

Such a beginning, while challenging, never beat them down. They eventually got their house built, the horse became the family pet, and the barn was used to store whatever needed to be stored.

They were still unsure what to do with their property, until the day Kristin discovered the remains of some old grape vines and a hedge-row trellis on the property. The prospect of vineyards intrigued them. “I always liked wine,” Stephen said, “so on a trip to St. Louis, we stopped at wineries and I asked questions about the business.”

They were interested enough that Stephen, a human resources director for construction companies, attended the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s winemaking school at Whisky Run Creek Winery. Kristin studied winemaking through the Viticulture, Enology Science and Technology Alliance (VESTA) program, and continues to work full time at a social services agency.

“It was kind of a gradual thing,” Kristin said. They spent the next years learning about the business, renovating the barn, buying equipment and making mistakes. “Our first harvest, the birds ate all of the grapes,” Kristin said. They learned to put netting up after that. Another harvest was killed by a deep hard freeze, something they can’t do a lot about.

Stephen and Kristin spent hours before and after work, and weekends, planting, harvesting, and experimenting with wine formulas. Stephen retired last year to devote more time to the winemaking business. “Now I do the same thing but don’t get as much done,” he said.

Graue Vineyards is comprised of two adjacent vineyards, growing Cayuga, Traminette, Norton, Vignoles, Chambourcin, St Pepin, Chardonel and Muscat grapes. The Graues supplement by buying additional grapes, as well as much of the fruit they use to make fruit and mead wines. They do their own harvesting, crushing and bottling.

Making wine is hard work, and time consuming. “It takes a couple of years for us to get comfortable with the taste,” Stephen said, referring to the process before they offer a wine for sale. They opened the winery to the public in October, 2010.

Peach wine is a favorite of their customers. “They love the peach wine,” Kristin said. “It was featured at the Kansas State Fair last year.” Their wines have won nine awards, including a silver medal at last year’s Mid-America Wine Competition.

“We offer a full range of wines from dry reds and whites to sweeter styles, something for all palates,” Kristin said. Fruit wines, depending on harvest and availability, include apple, peach and blackberry.

Middle Creek Wines

“We’re in a transitional period right now,” Stephen said. “It’s a small mom and pop operation, and we want to keep control of it. But the business is telling us we need more wine, more employees, because it’s growing.”

Part of that growth involves a new endeavor. The Graues bought an old general store in New Lancaster, Kansas, approximately 367^th Street west of Metcalf. It was built in 1874 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. They have been renovating the building, and plan to open it in July. “It will feature Kansas-made products,” Kristin said. That includes cheeses and Middle Creek wine of course.

Middle Creek Winery and Graue Vineyards, 4353 W. 351^st St., is a member of the Somerset Wine trail, and is open to visitors from noon to 6 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. You can find more information by visiting www.middlecreekwinery.com or on Facebook.