Obituary of Agnes Jane Trainor

Agnes Jane (Epple) Trainor of Bridgeport, CT passed away on April 21, 2023 at age 92. She was born on September 27, 1930, in Altoona, Pennsylvania, to the late Agnes Ruth (Trissler) Epple and the late Lawrence Clement Epple. Jane Trainor lived a full and colorful life with a true artist's perspective. A loving daughter, sister, wife, mother, and grandmother, Jane's spirit drove her creativity as a painter and writer throughout her life. Growing up in Altoona, and known by her nickname Korky, Jane graduated from Altoona High School in 1948 with advanced secretarial skills. She joined her sister in New York City and worked for Muzak, then the two moved to Washington DC and Jane worked with General Jimmy Doolittle to coordinate the national celebration of the Fiftieth Anniversary of Powered Flight. While living with her sister in Foggy Bottom, she met and married George E. Trainor, and began a family with a corporate lifestyle as Ford Motor Company transferred them to Dearborn, MI; Cleveland, OH; Northvale, NJ; Washington, DC; Brussels, Belgium; Birmingham, MI; and Arlington, VA. Jane continued to live in Arlington for almost 50 years. Returning to her administrative profession in the nation's capital, Jane was chief administrator for NIRI, the National Investor Relations Institute, and worked until her retirement for Boris & Garafolo law firm. She was also a volunteer docent at the Smithsonian Institution. She moved to Bridgeport, CT to a retirement community in 2015. Jane always pursued her passion as an artist, receiving numerous awards, gallery exhibitions, and recognition in art magazines, such as International Artist. She saw art inspiration in everything around her. Jane worked for the Northern Virginia Art League, and was one of the original studio tenants at the Torpedo Factory Art Center in Alexandria, VA. Her art was inspired by various artists and styles, such as Paul Jenkins, Louise Nevelson, Mark Rothko, Georgia O'Keeffe, and Judy Chicago, and Asian techniques inspired by trips to Hawaii and Japan. Jane studied under Ralph DeBurgos and Katherine Chang Liu, working in several media styles and techniques including oils, acrylic, watercolor, mixed media, found objects, and photography. Her last one artist show was held at The Watermark 3030, Park Ave. Jane Trainor never stopped creating and left several works-in-progress. Jane is survived by her sister, Irene Mary Epple, and her daughters and grandchildren and their husbands: Sharon Irene Trainor-Smith and David Scott Smith, MD of Fairfield, CT; Brenda Jane Trainor and Kevin Sterling Dods of Monrovia, CA; and her grandchildren: Ryan Gray Smith of Fairfield, CT, and Kathleen Rose (Smith) Jackson and James Ross Jackson of Melbourne, VC, Australia. Jane was married to the late George Edward Trainor from 1953 to 1976. In lieu of flowers, please take some time to find the art in your life, and support a cause in which you believe. Jane's family will be supporting Parkinson's research in her honor. Services will be private. For travel directions or to sign her online guest register, please visit www.LeskoPolkeFuneralHome.com