She was a very special person who I will always remember. So very sorry. She was a remarkable person... she seemed like she would excel in any endeavor and she was so warm and talented. - Cindy Browning
She was a beautiful person! - Lyne Connor
She was a huge David Bowie fan in high school. One of many things I liked about her. - Stephen Hamm
She was always so sweet! - Pam Jones
She had a sweet soul. - Sandra Adams
Jo’s smile would instantly light up a room! She had such a magnetic personality and enthusiasm for life. I am so sad to hear of this loss. She will be missed. - Karen Felix
She was always so kind. - Julie Gazaway ’77
JoAnne was so sweet .. She was real folk - Stephanie McLaney
My childhood friend and neighbor... we lived across the street from each other. A very gifted and special lady 💕 Loved our cheerleading days together. So many special memories - Karen Barnett
She was always soooo nice an kind - Gala Phillips
My mother, Joanne Keller-Wolf, passed away on Tuesday. I'm flooded with thoughts and emotions but the following is what I feel called to share now.
My mom was the type of person who made friends wherever she went and was inclusive in a way I always admired. She loved being in relationship with others and was genuinely interested in and cared for their well-being.
She was beautiful and strong. Elegant yet not afraid to get messy. She always encouraged me to try all kinds of things and pursue what my heart wanted. She believed anything was possible. She was an enthusiastic optimist, even called a Pollyanna at times. A romantic, she saw the world through rose colored glasses, seeing the silver lining in everything and the good in everyone. She loved just about everything but she especially loved flowers, hearts, music, theater, photography, dance, the Agape community, her recovery community, her family and friends. Most of all she loved her children, defining her life by us.
She had an incredible life. As a child living in New Mexico, then Alabama, she seemed to excel at everything she tried (school, ice skating, cheerleading, theater, making her own clothes). She earned the title of valedictorian and got a full ride to Rice University in Houston. She excelled there earning two degrees in Art History and English Literature. While there she also met my dad. She attended art school in San Francisco for a bit before joining my dad in Florida, then moved to Saudi Arabia in 1982. She taught Jazzercise, volunteered in all our classrooms, was a bus monitor, and participated in the Dhahran Theater Group. In the mid 90s she spent some time in Minnesota and loved working the stage door of the Ordway Center when Rent the musical was playing there. She lived in southern California, outside of Nashville, and then settled back in Huntsville, AL.
Coming from a large family she wanted one herself. Looking back she seemed like a superhero of a mom when I was young. She always had a kid on her hip and a wide smile across her face as she dropped off lunches at school for us and carpooled us to our various after school activities. She always had an enthusiastic greeting for my friends who knew her as Mrs. Wolf. She would beam at all of our performances and games, encouraging us every step of the way. Even with her full plate she still somehow found time to cook us all healthy, gourmet meals, rub my arm while I was in bed and patiently listened to the long-winded stories of my day.
She was open about her struggles with mental health and addiction issues that unfortunately led to various physical health issues later in life. She was in treatment for her alcoholism for most of my eighth-grade year but it led to one of her longer lengths of sobriety. It's due to her example then that I got clean and sober myself at 19. She was the ultimate comeback kid. After each relapse she always got back up with hope and positivity. I am so grateful for all the big hearted people in her recovery community who helped her along her journey.
It feels unfair that she was in yet another one of her upswings when she passed. She had recently moved into a new home we kids had bought for her. She had made some new friends in her neighborhood and in my last voicemail from her, from just over a week ago, she detailed her visits with them how much she admired their flowers. She loved how her brother David, "sister" Betsy, and their family had brought her into the fold of their lives. She had just graduated from a program she enjoyed with the CWJC, was active in her recovery community, and was enjoying participating in a bible study. The week before she passed she had had a wonderful visit with Kylie and Garrett and was in great spirits each time I spoke with her. She was so looking forward to the weddings of Tyler and Jenna, Slater and Asiye, and Erik and I, as well as the imminent arrival of her first grandchildren, twin grandsons.
My mom was a light. She exuded love. She had an infectious smile. I loved the way I felt when she looked at me, beaming.
There have been some auspicious/synchronistic things happening. Kylie and Garrett pulled over while driving from AL to TX when they got the news and missed a tornado in the next town. Currently all my sibs are on the beach in Freeport, TX celebrating the 90th birthday of our paternal grandmother (thank you science, we needed the hugs after being away from each other for so long). Our Aunt Betsy has been our hero on the ground through all the decisions we're having to navigate. Marissa has found two shells with heart shaped holes in them. The sunset and stars were brilliant last night. And after the sunset, our dad shared with us that 40 years ago, this week, he asked our mom to spend the rest of her life with him.
If you pray, we hope you keep our mom in your prayers. We are relieved she is no longer burdened by her body and pray she is free. Maybe she's reunited with loved ones, particularly her parents and our sister Zoe. We hope to carry her zest for life and love of others in our hearts.
My siblings and I feel so lucky to have each other, our family, and friends through this. - Sam Wolf, Joanne’s daughter
