Gail Jensen

Gail Kathleen (Carlson) Jensen, born March 3, 1956, in Troy to Rodney (Bruce) and Ethel (Essie) Carlson of Dry Creek, Idaho, died Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026.

She attended Troy High School and graduated in 1973. In the fall of 1973, she started college at the University of Idaho and, in 1978, graduated with a degree in elementary and secondary education.

After graduating, she joined Deary High School as an English teacher and taught there for 27 years. During that time, she spent her summers teaching at Upward Bound, a job dedicated to serving underprivileged youth. For the last nine years of her career, she transitioned to Bovill Elementary School, where she taught first grade. In 2014, “Mrs. J” retired after 36 years in the education system. After retiring, she realized she couldn’t continue to read three Nora Roberts’ books in one day, so she went back to work part-time at Troy High School in the special education department.

She married Dennis Jensen, a fellow teacher at Deary High School, on