Streamwood art teacher offered lessons in life, too

Women make policy, not coffee.

The saying adorned one of the many buttons Jan Marie Worth and friends wore during their early teaching days in the late 1960s.

Mrs. Worth, who worked for civil, women's and teachers' rights during much of her career as an educator -- including 22 years teaching art at Streamwood High School -- died Dec. 1 in Flat Rock, N.C. She was 64.

Her husband, Tom, recalls an incident around 1968 when Mrs. Worth discovered that an old department store in Elgin, where they lived, offered free alternations to men but charged women. She took it up with the manager.

"Jan didn't get anywhere, so four days later, she came back with a petition of 250 names," Worth said. "Within a week, they took out a half-page ad announcing a change in policy. These ladies flexed their muscles and it was fun to watch."

Mrs. Worth had countless stories like it.

She was no stranger to the picket line either. Mrs. Worth was co-representative of the Elgin Teachers Association and helped lead pickets during numerous teacher strikes until her retirement as department chair in 2000.

"She was always taking her kids to high schools and malls to be in exhibits," said Glen Lose, principal from 1989 to 1994. "An awful lot of kids owe her an awful lot."

Art was Mrs. Worth's passion in all facets of life, her friends and family say.

She taught drawing and painting and helped create curriculum. Lois Wilhelm, a retired social studies teacher at Streamwood, said her best friend helped get students scholarships and into art school. She also established the Purchase Award in which the school buys and permanently displays a piece of student work.

"Not everyone can be an artist, but they can see the world through an artist's eyes," Wilhelm says. "Her students came to appreciate art and so will their children. The ripple effect Jan made will last for generations."

Mrs. Worth was a talented artist in her own right. Nearly 30 pieces of her art hang at home, and she has participated in various exhibits. She was known as a decorator with exquisite taste and an expert eye.

To the surprise of some friends, the Worths moved to a Lake in the Hills country club in 1991. She took up golf.

"I was dumbfounded because she didn't have an interest in sports, and I couldn't see her out there with all the ladies," Wilhelm said. "She told me, 'We just can't talk about politics.'Œ"

The Worths moved to the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Travelers Rest, S.C., two years ago to escape the harsh winters. She was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer a month later, despite never having smoked. She got in six rounds of chemotherapy, three rounds of golf and lived nearly a year longer than the doctors gave her.

"Even at the end, Jan was buying jewelry and antiques," Wilhelm says. "She said, 'I'm going out in style.' "

Visitation will be at noon Sunday followed by a memorial service at 2 p.m. at Willow Funeral Home, 1415 W. Algonquin Road in Algonquin. Interment is private.

Memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society, 225 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 1200, Chicago, IL 60601 or Anderson Animal Shelter, 1000 S. La Fox St., South Elgin, IL 60177, where Mrs. Worth got her cat of 21 years.