Janice Lee LaVoie Holik, age 75, peacefully passed away Friday morning, September 5, 2025 at the Brightonian Nursing home in Rochester, NY. She was born July 5, 1950 in Troy, NY to the late James W. LaVoie and Betty LaVoie Maselli. Janice attended SUNY Binghamton (where most of her best stories came from) and worked as a ballroom dance teacher for Arthur Murray Studios in the early part of her career. She later found her calling as a private ballroom dance instructor, expanding to several parts of the Albany, NY area and teaching countless grateful students how to Fox Trot and Samba. Jan was fiercely intelligent, creative and passionate, and hysterically funny. Her creativity found its home in oil, watercolor, and acrylic painting, charcoal, pastel, and colored-pencil drawing, decoupage, genealogy, astrology, sewing, and various other endeavors. She was truly a jack-of-all-trades. The deepest love and joy of her life was her four children, who she was immeasurably proud of and who remain inspired by her constant faith in them and her sense of fun even in the hardest times.
Those who knew Jan will remember her humor – sometimes sharply sarcastic, sometimes slapstick – her empathetic heart and fondness for animals, her Salsa and her Hustle, and her loyalty and tenacious love for her family. Jan was utterly herself and unique in every way.

Janice is survived by her four children and their spouses, Brenna Rybak (Tom) of Rochester, NY, William James Holik (Caitlin) of San Antonio, TX, Elizabeth Lopez (Jay) of Chesterfield, NJ, and David Holik (Rebecca) of Niskayuna, NY; and six grandchildren, Matthew and Mitchell Rybak, Matthew and Sophia Lopez, and Lucy and Samuel Holik. She also leaves behind her cousins and many students and friends who will miss her deeply.

The family wishes to thank the doctors and staff at Wilmot Cancer Center & Strong Memorial Hospital for their guidance and support, the staff at Happier at Home-West Rochester for their care and patience when we needed them most, and the nurses and staff at the Village at Towngate and the Brightonian Nursing Home for their gentle and loving care.

Janice will be interred at St. Patrick’s Cemetery in Watervliet, NY after a small graveside service with immediate family.
Condolences may be sent to the family at dancinginheaven2025@gmail.com. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Wilmot Cancer Center in Rochester, NY.

“When they’ve all had their quarrels and parted, we’ll be the same as we started, as we travel along singing a song, side by side.”