Marcia Root Jansen

Marcia Root Jansen died naturally on January 10, 2026. She was known for the quality of her attention to family and friends. In conversation, she was totally present, making others feel seen, and always seeking understanding. She had a finely tuned social conscience. She was happy in her support of the arts. Marcia Root Jansen was age 87.

Marcia was born on November 13, 1938, in Chicago, Illinois. She was the daughter of John Hill “Jack” Root and Dorothy (LeMire) Root. Her life was rich in the embrace of extended family. She spent her early childhood in Crown Point, Indiana, and grew up along with her Root cousins who lived in the tree-shaded house just across the street. Marcia later moved with the family to Escanaba in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and lived for a time there with her LeMire cousins.

She graduated in 1960 from Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana. Here she met her husband, Joe. The growing family moved first to Janesville, Wisconsin, then to Western Springs, Illinois, before landing in Indianapolis in 1968. When her youngest, Steve (always “Stephen” to her) arrived on the scene, Marcia had six kids under the age of eight.

She had an enduring interest in matters of philosophy and religion and spirit. Even after hours behind the wheel of a Buick station wagon, shuttling six kids to all the school events and extracurriculars, Marcia still made time to serve as a long-standing member of the liturgy committee in the family’s Catholic parish. Over time she developed an appreciation for the variety of world wisdom traditions. Even recently, she was excited about starting an online Buddhist meditation course in which she’d enrolled.

When Marcia entered a new phase of her life, she returned to the workforce as an office manager for Bass Photo, which held the largest existing collection of historic photographs of 20th-century Indianapolis. She later studied for a paralegal certification and joined Dow Brands / Dow AgroSciences as a legal administrator supporting patent counsel.

In 2004 at the age of 66, when others of her cohort were retiring to the golf course or a knitting circle, Marcia took her retirement and moved to Washington, DC, to work in the offices of Democracy Rising, an advocacy group established by Ralph Nader to oppose corruption and unjust war. She was later a supporter of the Sanders presidential runs. With campaign stickers affixed to her tailgate, her car was affectionately known by her children and grandchildren as “The Bernie Mobile.”

Returning home to Indianapolis in 2008, Marcia joined The Great American Songbook Foundation at the Carmel (Indiana) Center for the Performing Arts. She was the Songbook’s first volunteer, cataloging historic sheet music in the Foundation’s archives. She specialized in efficiency, problem-solving, and process-improvement. Their executive director recently said, “She was so special to us. Marcia was our first volunteer when we had only two staff members. The impact she made here continues. We still use the database system she helped create.”

Marcia cared for her body and mind. She was a regular at her exercise classes, practiced yoga, and enjoyed exploring nonfiction works of history and philosophy. She was inquiring, open to the experience of awe, and grateful for her life and her family. Invariably after a dinner together, an excursion with a grandkid, or a concert with family, she was sure to send an emoji-laden text that was full of gratitude and love. She would be grateful for the restaurant or the event, for sure, but NOT before saying she appreciated the time spent together. She was engaged in life. Her daughter-in-law Kim said it: “She died living.”

Marcia is survived by her sister, Nancy Smith, and her children: Joe (Jill), John (Ann), Mike (Beth), Cathy Elzinga (John), David, and Stephen (Kim). Marcia was a loving and attentive grandmother to Audrey Todd (Austin Gossweiler), Lauren Meadows, Joseph Thomas (Nicole) Jansen, Alexandra Jansen, Gabrielle Jansen, Delaney Jansen, Alec Jansen, Melanie Jansen, Catherine Elzinga, Francie Elzinga, Emily Elzinga, Annie Jansen, Sarah Jansen, Will Jansen, and Kate Jansen. Marcia recently became a great-grandmother to Brooks Thomas Jansen, and looked forward to meeting him later this summer. She was godmother to her niece, Dorothy Denise Larkin Carroll. Marcia was loved deeply by her many nieces and nephews; their own children referred to her as “Gr-aunt Marcia.”

Marcia was preceded in death by her parents Jack and Dorothy, her infant brother John Root Jr., and her sister Karen Larkin Johnson.

A Celebration of Life for Marcia will take place on Saturday, March 7, 2026, at Flanner Buchanan’s Prairie Waters Funeral and Event Center at Hamilton Memorial Park, 4180 Westfield Road, Westfield, Indiana. Friends and family are invited to gather, visit, and share memories from 1:00 to 3:00 pm. A memorial service will begin at 3:00 pm ET.

Marcia will rest next to her parents and brother in the Root Family Plot at Historic Maplewood Cemetery in Crown Point, Indiana. Interment will take place at a future date.

In lieu of flowers, the family invites you to make a donation in Marcia’s name to the cause or charity that means the most to you.

It’s been said that attention is the purest form of generosity. Those who spent time with Marcia knew what it was like to receive that gift. We will treasure and miss that gift of her generous and unconditional love and attention, so freely given.