The Rev. Philip Janowsky, beloved father, grandfather, friend and minister, passed away at Penrose Hospital in Colorado Springs on Dec. 25, 2023.
His father, Walter Janowsky, was a Free Methodist minister and his mother, Lena Blowers Janowsky, excelled in children’s ministry. They served on a Seneca Indian reservation when Phil was a child and the experience gave him an enduring love of Native American history and culture.
Phil was a man of many gifts, and the books in his home office reveal a treasury of wisdom and adventure that reflect his spirit well. He was known for passionate yet intellectual preaching, sensitive pastoral care and mastery of an eclectic mix of history, religion, cowboy music, sports, hunting and fishing.
He was born on Sept. 2, 1934, in Forestville, N.Y. As a young man Phil loved athletic competition, excelling in basketball, tennis and weight lifting. He loved to roam the western New York backcountry, usually with a bow or shotgun in hand. While studying at Houghton College in preparation for entering the ministry, he met his lifelong sweetheart, Mary Jo Wilson. They married in 1956 and had four children. Mary Jo passed away during their 62nd year of marriage and Phil wore her engagement ring on his little finger to the end of his life.
They were true partners in ministry and served three New York churches before moving “out west,” where they served 10 churches over the family’s years, primarily in Colorado and Kansas. A lover of scholarship, Phil earned two advanced degrees along the way: a Master of Arts in religion from Kansas University and a Master of Divinity from Denver’s Iliff School of Theology. Phil’s preaching covered a wide-ranging mix of scripture, humor, historical theology, sports and popular culture, but it always ended with the grace and forgiveness offered to everyone through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Moving west had been one of Phil’s boyhood dreams and he especially enjoyed pastoring two rural churches, each for a decade: West Bethany Free Methodist Church northwest of Leoti, Kan., and the Sargent Community Church in Colorado’s San Luis Valley. His appreciation of cowboy culture grew during those years and he created a music presentation with slides called “Pictures, Songs and Stories of the American Cowboy.” He loved to sing and play guitar, and his program led to invitations to perform at various Colorado cowboy poet events.
After his retirement from full-time ministry, Phil supported Mary Jo as a teacher at Pagosa Springs Elementary School and later Our Savior Lutheran Church. Every year he would load up some hay bales and sing his beloved cowboy songs for her students. In his 80s he would accept help to climb stage steps and sing “Ghost Riders in the Sky” when his son Andy’s Durango-based band The High Rollers was in town. He liked applying his knowledge of history and theology in letters to the editor and he was especially fond of giving thoughtful devotional talks at the conclusion of his son Dan’s wrestling camps.
Phil was preceded in death by his wife, Mary Jo Janowsky (2013), and son, Andrew Thomas Janowsky (2021). He is survived by his daughter, Peggy Haslar (Rick), and sons Daniel Janowsky (Nyana) and Mark Janowsky; grandchildren Benjamin Haslar, Matthew Haslar (Kate), Ronnie Janowsky (Michelle), Caleb Janowsky; and great-grandchildren Philip and Abby Haslar and Kensington and Caden Janowsky.
A memorial service will be held at the Community United Methodist Church in Pagosa Springs at 2 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 5.
