Jane Tyner spent many years working as an English as a second language teacher and volunteering at the Lincoln Park Zoo and Field Museum of Natural History.

       “There was sort of a regal quality about Jane, in the way that she carried herself and in the way that she approached all people,” said Pat Ulmer, a longtime friend. “She had a very calm persona, she was empathetic and she was very engaged with anybody that she met or interacted with. And she had a very strong interest in learning things.”

       Jane Tyner in an undated photo. She worked for many years as an ESL teacher at Oakton Community College, a continuation of teaching work she had done when earlier based in foreign countries. (Howard Tyner)

       Tyner, 75, died of lung disease on Oct. 11 in Sydney, Australia, said her husband, Howard Tyner, who was the Tribune’s editor from 1993 until 2001. She had been a longtime Evanston resident.

       An Australia native, Tyner was born Elizabeth Jane Adams in the Sydney area. She grew up in north suburban Sydney and earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Sydney in 1966. She then began touring Europe with two friends and was in a small ski village near Salzburg, Austria, in early 1968 when she met her future husband, who was visiting from London to ski with a friend.

       The couple began dating and were married in May 1969. Then a foreign correspondent, Tyner’s husband was stationed in Vienna shortly after their wedding and later moved to postings in Germany, Poland, the United Kingdom and Moscow.

       In 1977, Tyner’s husband joined the Tribune, and the couple settled in Evanston. Tyner’s husband began preparing to return to Moscow for another posting as a foreign correspondent, which prompted Tyner to pursue a master’s degree at Northwestern University in Slavic languages and literature. She earned her master’s degree in 1982.

       Tyner and her husband returned to Evanston in 1985. Tyner worked for many years as an ESL teacher at Oakton Community College, her husband said, which was a continuation of the teaching work she had done when earlier based in foreign countries.

       Tyner used her teaching skills while volunteering at the Lincoln Park Zoo.

       “She had a lot of leadership qualities,” recalled Sharleene Frank, who later also volunteered alongside Tyner at the Field Museum. “I would say she was an outstanding docent, because she was very smart. We would take classes together whenever there was a new exhibit. I would watch her take notes — her note-taking was beautiful — and then we would go through the exhibit, deciding what we wanted to cover in our tours.”

       Tyner then shifted to working as a volunteer docent at the Field Museum, also alongside Frank.

       “She was intellectually curious and had the same intensity and curiosity in connecting with people,” Ulmer said.

       Tyner also worked for many years as a volunteer with the Evanston School Children’s Clothing Association, which works to ensure that all children in Evanston have warm, sturdy clothing.

       Outside of her volunteer work, Tyner enjoyed spending time with family, reading, traveling, going to the theater, gardening and playing mahjong.

       “She loved gardening and flowers, and when she moved to a condo recently, she did all the landscaping there,” Ulmer said.

       Sue Hansen, a neighbor, was part of a group of four other women who played mahjong with Tyner. A fellow Australia native, Hansen said she and Tyner would bond over their shared experiences.

       “We would chat and find these relatively bizarre Australian commonalities,” Hansen said. “She was very funny, very warm and bright and just a great friend.”

       In recent years, Tyner and her husband spent increasing amounts of time each year in her native Sydney. The couple arrived in Sydney in December 2019 to spend several months with their children, who live in Australia. After Australia closed its borders due to the pandemic, Tyner and her husband remained in Australia over the ensuing nearly two years, as her health declined.

       In addition to her husband, Tyner is survived by a daughter, Sophie; a son, Ian; and a brother, Philip Adams.

       There were no services.

       Bob Goldsborough is a freelance reporter.

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