Janet Borum danced through life.

"She would dance around the house all the time," said family friend Joyce Mosley of Roswell. "It was a signature thing with her. When we went out to dinner, she was always sort of dancing out the door, snapping to the beat. When she was listening to music, she was always counting the beats by tapping."

Family photo (ENLARGE)

Janet Borum designed dance costumes, taught dancing, performed on Broadway, served in World War II and, in 1993, added a movie credit to her resume.

Mrs. Borum helped organize the Southern Ballet of Atlanta in 1952 and was its costume designer, said her daughter Lynn Borum of Roswell, who performed with the company.

After rearing her children, Mrs. Borum created the Solid Silver Dancers — whom she taught till she was 84 — and danced with the Seniorettes, both dance troupes of older women.

The funeral Mass for Janet Stull Borum, 86, of Roswell is 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at St. Andrews Catholic Church. She died Thursday at Northeast Atlanta Health and Rehabilitation Center of complications from a November automobile accident. Roswell Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Mrs. Borum danced as a child in her native Altoona, Pa., and at 18 was cast in her first Broadway show, said another daughter, Pam Randolph of Dunwoody. She danced with some of the greats of the era before joining the U.S. Army Air Forces in 1943. She was a first lieutenant when she was discharged in 1946 with an American Theater Service Medal, Mrs. Randolph said.

Moving to Atlanta with her husband, the late John Borum, she danced when she could while rearing her children. As they grew older, Mrs. Borum continued to support the Southern Ballet of Atlanta, opened a dance studio and joined area dance troupes.

"She was a fantastic costume designer and executioner," Ms. Borum said. "When we did 'Pandora's Box,' the costumes for that were sensational."

Mrs. Borum collected a closet full of favorite costumes from the ballet and her performances with the Solid Silver Dancers and Seniorettes.

"They were absolutely gorgeous," Ms. Mosley said. "That was her passion."

Mrs. Borum was featured in a 1986 Atlanta Journal-Constitution article on active and involved older people. Described as "slim as a model half her years," Mrs. Borum, the article said, "has never stopped dancing and her yearning to perform on stage has not waned."

Busy teaching dance, taking dance lessons, entertaining at benefits and performing at nursing homes, Mrs. Borum added a movie credit to her resume in 1993. She is seen briefly in the opening scenes of "Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All," which was filmed in Georgia, Ms. Borum said.

"She never gave her dream up," she said.

That was Mrs. Borum's advice in the newspaper article. "Whatever you have enjoyed in life, don't stop it in the future," she said. "A continuation of those things which you enjoyed will keep you young."

Mrs. Borum was an inspiration, Ms. Mosley said. "Her wittiness, her outgoing personality, she was an inspiration to be around," she said. "For her age, she was so active — and so active in so many things. It was inspiring to see."

Survivors include two other daughters, Deborah Harris of Roswell and Denise Coates of Powder Springs; two sons, John Borum and David Borum, both of Roswell; nine grandchildren; and a great-grandchild.