Jan Gestefeld Moore Obituary

Jan Moore SEMINOLE, FL - Jan took her final curtain call on October 22, 2025, achieving her final goal of reaching the august age of 90 - a first in her family! Jan's amazing life began on September 16, 1935, when she was born to Caroline Mabel Calhoun and Don Roller Gestefeld in her beloved city of Charleston, SC. She attended Charleston Day School, graduated from Ashley Hall in 1953, and attended the College of Charleston, where she met Archibald Seabrook Jenkins, Jr., her first husband and father of her two children: Gail Jenkins Holesha (Jim) of Clearwater, FL, and Archibald ("Brooks") Seabrook Jenkins, III, of Charleston. While raising her children, Jan also held numerous jobs through the years, but what most in Charleston will remember her for - and her greatest passion in life - was the theater. It all began in the fifth grade at Charleston Day School when she performed as "Little Red Riding Hood"...in French! In the seventh grade, she delighted students and parents with her magnificent dying scene in the role of Pyramus in "A Midsummer Night's Dream." As a high school freshman, she was encouraged by a friend to audition for the role of Dinah in "Philadelphia Story" at the Dock Street Theatre. So began a 50+ year span of performances at both the Dock Street Theatre and The Footlight Players. Comedy, drama, thriller - there was no genre or accent that could elude her. Some of Jan's favorite plays were: The Burning Tide, Jubalee, Rashamon, All the Way Home, Wait Until Dark, Any Wednesday, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, Lettice and Lovage, and The Full Monty. While lauded for her extraordinary talent on the stage, her family and many friends will most miss Jan's warmth, her laughter, her wicked sense of humor, and her gift for storytelling. In addition to her children, Jan is survived by a sister, Donna Williams (Tom) of Ft. Myers, FL; and four grandchildren: Jordan Ashley Lykens (Steven) of Denver, CO; Austin Seabrook Ector of Marion, NC; O'Malley Seabrook Jenkins and Legare Marie Jenkins, both of Mt. Pleasant, SC. She was preceded in death by two brothers: Don Buist Gestefeld and Jon Reynolds Gestefeld, both of Charleston. A graveside service will be held at Magnolia Cemetery on November 21 at 2pm. Memorial donations that would most please Jan include: The Footlight Players, The National Multiple Sclerosis Society, or Ashley Hall.