About Jocelyn
Like her mother, Jocelyn had a fierce passion for justice and a serious, stubborn side that contrasted with her easy laugh and goofball demeanor. When she set her mind to a goal, only a fool would bet against her.
She was known by her many friends and teachers and coaches for her courage and dedication, her hundred-watt smile, and her intelligence. She worked hard at school and at the gym, and as a result her grades were high and her scores were competitive, and she was emerging as a leader among her teammates. On birthdays, she raised funds for charities rather than receiving gifts.
Jocelyn loved horseback riding, animals — especially dogs — and ice cream, and in anticipation of the family’s trip to Hawaii, she was learning to play the ukulele. As a younger child she loved swimming and performed in the annual water ballet show at the community pool — and when she was older she joined Mike for an arctic plunge in Norway. She also did a flip off a bridge into freezing cold fjord on that trip, and it was her idea to drive five hours out of the way to visit the spectacular Geiranger fjord. When the family tackled a mountain climb in Loen, Norway, Jocelyn chose the most challenging path — and excelled.
She loved her dog Cadie, July Fourth and fireworks, and Lizzo and Arianna Grande. She had an artistic eye and was an aspiring photographer, and frequently borrowed her father’s SLR camera to document the domestic and natural life around her. In her family, her nickname was Ladybug.
Each year, Jocelyn’s middle school in Madison, Wisconsin, awards the Jocelyn Gannon Spirit Award to an eighth grader who shares Jocelyn’s qualities of kindness, inclusion, courage, empowerment, and athletics.
Jocelyn embodied a visible, irrepressible joy and was genuinely kind and supportive to everyone she knew. She was smart, loving, and beautiful — inside and out.