As a community, you’d be hard pressed to find someone who isn’t heartbroken over the passing of Janell Whitlock, who died on Thursday. Janell was an incredibly good person who cared deeply about those around her. The sincerity of her compassion drove those around her to increased success.
Janell and her husband, the late Louis Whitlock, were this community’s greatest cheerleaders for many years. Together they laid the foundation for so much of what is good about Carlsbad today. Janell also had her own incredible career as an elected official, which included being a judge, county commissioner and city councilor. She was widely known as being the most highly prepared elected official. Recently, she had devoted herself to making Carlsbad an age friendly community.
And, of course, Janell was also an outstanding mom, grandmother and friend, who loved junk food and who took her trips to the hair salon very seriously.
Many of us are going to be grieving over Janell’s passing for some time, but we take comfort in the fact that it seems like everyone is sharing Janell stories, either over social media or in person, about a time she personally showed them compassion or mentored them. City councilors are sharing tales about her sense of humor and her preparedness. Relative newcomers to our town are talking about how welcome she made them feel when they arrived here. Our police officers and other city employees all have stories about how much she made them feel appreciated. We’re also receiving an outpouring of grief from around the state right now – from men and women who worked with Janell and loved her as well. If the greatest measure of an individual’s worth is by their positive impact on others – then Janell Whitlock is as wealthy as they come.
Janell was a great friend. I could always count on her for wisdom and good advice. We knew that her suggestions were sincerely in the best interests of Carlsbad and its residents. She had class and integrity.
Over the past couple days, a number of people have made the point that Janell was “a one in a million.” That’s certainly true – it would be very difficult to equal Janell.
As we look for ways to honor Janell’s memory, one way we can do so is to all make the personal decision to try to follow her example.
We can try to be like Janell by praising those around us and making them feel valued, and by looking for outsiders and helping them feel welcome. We can continue with her efforts to make Carlsbad a more Age Friendly community. We can follow her lead by always offering to help, by always being prepared and by always caring for those around us.
This community was so very blessed to have Janell Whitlock as a resident since 1957. She will be deeply missed, but she will also remain an inspiration to us all.
Sincerely,
Carlsbad Mayor Dale Janway