Maurice Janco
Maurice Janco, prominent Santa Barbara realtor, died peacefully at the age of 93 on February 21st under hospice care at Heritage House. He was born April 14, 1928 in Oklahoma City to Dr. Leon and Margaret (Mantinband) Janco. Maurice attended Central High School in Oklahoma City and matriculated to the University of Oklahoma where he earned a degree in Engineering Physics in 1949 and his Masters in Physics from the University of Michigan in 1950. He furthered his studies in Electrical Engineering at Penn State College, where he worked on the world’s largest water tunnel participating in research for the Navy on torpedo propulsion. He was a nuclear physicist at Los Alamos National Laboratory in Los Alamos, NM where he was actively involved in testing hydrogen and atomic bombs. In 1953, this job took him to the Marshall Islands where they tested and took temperature measurements within hydrogen bomb explosions.
He married Vinita Barker in 1961 and moved to Santa Barbara in 1964 where they raised their two daughters, Linda and Lisa. He worked at General Research Corporation in Goleta until 1970 when he entered the real estate profession.
Maurice was a very friendly and outgoing person. Perhaps that’s why the real estate profession suited him so well. He spent more than 40 years helping people buy and sell real estate.
He was a jack of all trades. An inventor, pilot, mountain climber, avid skier, photographer, world traveler, and prolific writer of letters to the editor of the local paper. He enjoyed watching Jeopardy and reading Scientific American magazine. He loved to tell jokes, read books, play gin rummy, and visit Chumash casino to play poker. On many mornings he could be found at Starbucks in Montecito socializing with his friends. Some of his favorite memories were taking road trips across the country, Vegas weekend trips and cruises with his grandson, Nathaniel.
He is survived by his daughters Linda Vannier (Robert) and Lisa Janco, his grandchildren Nathaniel Jones (Helena), Parker Jones, Cassidy Jones, Christopher Vannier, Matthew Vannier, Sidney Bandy, and two great grandchildren Victoria and Thomas.
A memorial to celebrate his life is planned for April. Please contact the family for details.