Jan Jensen of St. Albert, Alta. passed away peacefully on Saturday, Nov. 12 at the Guelph General Hospital in Guelph, Ont. He was 68.
Jan was born in Odense, Denmark and immigrated with his family from Denmark to Edmonton, Alta. in 1957. Jan and his family lived in North Edmonton for a couple of years until they moved to a farm on St. Albert Trail in St. Albert, Alta. Many years were spent on this farm having two full barns of horses to board, train and break. Jan grew up with horses and had a love for them; they were always in his life.
Jan was very successful in his younger years. His lifelong career was with the Standardbred racehorses; he followed his father’s footsteps, Karlo Jensen, as did brothers Ole and Alex.
Jan started his drivers career driving Standardbred horses at the early age of 16 in Edmonton. The first racehorse he owned was Vans Chief.
Jan continued in the business for years with his own stable, training and racing Standardbred horses. He was also an avid and respected farrier, and you can bet he could shoe a horse to get them to the winner's circle!
Jan also raced in Chicago, Illinois and was leading driver for four months at Sportsman’s Park.
Jan had many good qualities; he loved to help people and was always there to lend a hand. He had a knack with kids, he loved kids and they loved him!
One of his loves that he was proud of was his 1974 Corvette, a vehicle that his family and friends all got a chance to ride in at top speeds!
When Jan first moved to Ontario, he was employed and worked for Kevin McMaster.
The Jensen family would like recognize and thank Pat Hudon and his family for taking Jan under their wing, always looking out for him and genuinely caring in the past few years. The Jensen family thanks you and appreciates all that was done for Jan!
Jan is predeceased by his father Karlo Jensen, mother Norma Jensen and baby sister Annette Jensen. He is survived by his daughter Annette Jensen, brother Ole Jensen (Jocelyne), Alex Jensen (Barbara), and many nieces and nephews.
A private ceremony will take place in Alberta at a later date.
Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the family and friends of Jan Jensen.