07/27/2026
Jeanette Hipskind, D.O., 83, of Rogersville, Missouri, passed away on June 8, 2026, at 3:58 p.m., following a courageous struggle with vascular dementia. A stroke in the summer of 2025 had left her left side significantly compromised, yet she faced her final months with the same quiet humor, grace and endurance that had defined her life. Born on July 26, 1942, in Fort Wayne, Indiana, to Irene (Brusnighan) and James G. Hipskind, Jeanette was a gentle soul whose care and quiet service extended from family and friends to patients and the wild cats she adopted.
Jeanette’s career path in medicine began early. After graduating from Central Catholic High School in Fort Wayne, she worked as a nurses’ aide before soon seeking entry into nursing school. She completed her nursing training at St. Joseph Hospital School of Nursing in Fort Wayne (1960–1963), then pursued further specialization at Grace Hospital School of Anesthesia in Detroit, Michigan, qualifying as a Nurse Anesthetist in 1972. Proving insufficient for her adventurous spirit, in June 1980, by sheer determination and the support of a tutor, she completed requirements at Michigan State University, College of Osteopathic Medicine in East Lansing, becoming a Doctor of Osteopathy. She served her residency in anesthesiology at Michigan Osteopathic Medical Center in Detroit, and in 1988 achieved Board Certification in Anesthesiology through the American Osteopathic College of Anesthesiologists (AOCA) — a distinction she maintained for the remainder of her career. She followed this by becoming an Examiner for the AOCA Oral Boards.
In all, Jeanette’s career spanned more than four decades and reflected both her tenacity and unwavering spirit of care and service: from the underachieving high school student to staff nurse (VA Hospital in Indianapolis, 1963–1967), to Head Nurse for the United States Public Health Service Tuberculosis Research program (1967–1971), then rising through the ranks at Michigan Health Center in Detroit, from Staff Anesthesiologist to Chair of the Department of Anesthesiology and Director of the Anesthesiology Training Program (1987–1992). The final chapter in her professional career was her service at the United States Medical Center for Federal Prisons in Springfield, Missouri, where she
served from 1992 to 2004 as Director of Anesthesiology Services. In this role, Jeanette brought the same compassion and excellence to patients, believing firmly that every person deserved the highest standard of medical care. She often described that her greatest joy as an anesthesiologist was caring for the spirits of her patients with gentleness and expertise as they were undergoing physically invasive procedures.
Even retirement could not keep her from the work she loved and the adventure she sought. Through 2008, she continued practicing as a contract anesthesiologist through Locum Tenens, which included several memorable stints in Alaska. Reflecting her exuberance for the land and people there, this assignment culminated in a shared family trip to introduce us to the land she had come to love.
Jeanette was a trailblazer in an era when women in medicine — and especially in the surgical specialties — were rare. She rose through the ranks not through fanfare, but through the steady, determined work of hands, mind, and heart. She also consciously renewed her spirit and found joy by spending time in Nature, especially through almost yearly journeys for over 40 years to camp at a womyn’s gathering in northern Michigan.
At her core, Jeanette was a deeply caring soul. In the most poignant moments, her philosophy was disarmingly simple: “just love them.” Those three words speak volumes about the woman she was — a healer in the truest sense, who understood that life was best lived through small and courageous acts of compassion.
Jeanette is survived by her loving life partner, Linda Thomas, whose companionship and devotion were a cherished source of joy and strength in life and in her final days. She is also survived by her brother, Tim Hipskind, and her many nieces and nephews. great nieces and nephews, and great greats whose lives were touched by this angel who walked among us. Those of us who joined Jeanette in her final days, in person and in spirit, know she is being lovingly welcomed by those who preceded her: her parents, James G. and Irene (Brusnighan) Hipskind; her brother, James Norman “Norm” Hipskind; and her sister, Sue Southern, and others who had known her deep love and care in their living years.
She will be remembered not only for the lives she touched through medicine, but for the quiet strength and dedication she brought to everything she did. Jeanette Hipskind made the world better — one patient, one person, one day, one act of grace at a time.
There will be two Celebrations of Life for Jeanette. The first will be on Friday, July 10, at 10:30 am at Northwoods Pavilion in Lake Springfield Park, Springfield, MO. The second will begin with a graveside gathering on Thursday, July 30, at 10:30 am at Falls Cemetery, Wabash, Indiana, followed by a still to be arranged luncheon in Indianapolis. Please feel free to join us at either or both Celebrations, and please come with memories and stories to share!
For those moved to make memorial donations, Jeanette was devoted to the caring work done by Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge in Eureka Springs, AR. (turpentinecreek.org)
McDonald Funeral Homes, 231 Falls Avenue, Wabash, Indiana 46992, have been trusted with handling arrangements for Jeanette Hipskind, D.O.
