Obituary of Janice Ferro Weidman

Janice Ferro Weidman, of Reston, VA, died 21 August 2012 at her home of complications from brain cancer. She was 72. Janice was born in Paterson, NJ, on June 6, 1940, of Dante John and Josephine Triggiani Ferro. She grew up in Wyckoff, NJ,attended St. Luke's High School in Ho-Ho-Kus, NJ and Douglass College at Rutgers University where she received a B.S. in 1962. On May 14, 1966, she married Donald R. Weidman, a mathematician from Kansas City, KS. She spent 24 years as a full-time mother to their four children, living in Dahlgren, VA and Fort Washington, MD. Her husband passed away in 1980. From 1993 to 2007, she worked for The Institute for Genomic Research in Rockville, MD where she co-authored more than 50 scientific papers on DNA sequencing, including the first sequencing of an entire organism's DNA. Her work on sequencing anthrax DNA contributed to the FBI's investigation into the 2001 AMERITHRAX terrorist attacks. After her retirement, she enjoyed traveling all over the world, including trips to Indonesia and southern Africa. She was an active member of St. Thomas à Becket Roman Catholic Church in Reston. She was known by neighbors and friends as a happy, generous, and faith-filled woman. Her ready laugh was contagious. She is survived by a brother, John Ferro of Reston; four children: Susan Philpott of Gaithersburg, MD, Gregory Weidman of Fairfax, VA, Wendy West of Quarryville, PA, and Kenna Josephene of Tucson, AZ; fifteen grandchildren and step-grandchildren; and one step-great-grandchild. Family will receive from on Monday August 27, 2012 from 2-4pm and 7-9pm with an 8:30 remembrance at Adams-Green Funeral Home, 721 Elden St. Herndon VA 20170. A Mass of Christian Burial will be at St. Thomas à Beckett Catholic Church, 1421 Wiehle Avenue Reston, VA 20190, on Tuesday August 28 at 11 am, with a reception to follow at the church hall. Interment will be held privately on Wednesday the 29th. Memorial gifts may be made to Hearts Home USA, http://usa.heartshome.org/ Online condolences may be left at www.adamsgreen.com