Jo Ann passed away peacefully at her home in Victoria, BC with family by her side.
Jo Ann was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Childhood was difficult as her mother passed when Jo Ann was only 5, she had no siblings, and her father was later hospitalized for 2 years due to debilitating early onset arthritis. Her fondest memories were of her beloved Grandma Squires, but Grandma had to move to another province. It was another great loss.
Jo Ann married at 21 and soon had 3 children. Unfortunately, being a stay-at-home wife and mother was not her dream so she found this stage of her life difficult too. She was limited by the opportunities available to women of her generation. Throughout her life, she found solace in art. She was very talented – doing charcoal drawing, photography, painting, and ultimately spent many years as a Fibre Artist where she had displays at shows, won awards and taught classes.
After her divorce, Jo Ann’s life was rejuvenated when she left Winnipeg behind to move to Victoria. It was daunting to move to a new city by herself, but her many walks by the ocean soon convinced her she had made the right decision. In Victoria she joined various guilds and clubs over the years, but her favourite organization was the Victoria Lawn Bowling Club. During her recent illness, her spirits were lifted when the Club made her an Honorary Life Member in recognition of her many volunteer contributions to the organization including coaching and developing their website. There are not many people who learn how to become a webmaster in their late seventies! A lifelong commitment to learning was Jo Ann’s hallmark.
Jo Ann did not want a formal funeral service. Instead, we invite her friends to drop by McCall Gardens on January 17 at 10 am for food & refreshments, to share stories with each other, and to celebrate her art. You may take home one of her art pieces in remembrance if you wish. In lieu of flowers, we ask that you consider making a donation in her name to a charity of your choice.
Condolences may be offered to the family below.
www.mccallgardens.com
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Larry Martin
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David Maher Jo Ann will always be remembered for having been my coach and instructor when I first joined the VLBC, about a dozen years ago. She was a stickler for proper rules and etiquette, both on and off the greens, and I admired her for her direct, sometimes blunt and feisty communication, and her openness in correcting members when we strayed over one line or another. I appreciated her dedication and willingness to step-in and commit to volunteering for a wide variety of roles at the club. She exemplified the meaning of volunteerism at its best. I had not been aware of the depth of of Jo Ann’s creativity and talent until today, when I attended her get-together at McCall’s, which exemplified another special dimension of her that I wish I had known about earlier. I think she would have been most pleased with the lovely, low-key reception that was held in her honor today. I will miss her!
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Anita McCaw *Competitive but always willing to share her expertise and experience
* A traditionalist- play the game by the rules .
* Her appreciation for the long and varied history of the club.
Those are the things I most enjoyed about Jo Ann.
We were colleagues, competitors and friends
I shall miss her .
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Dilys McGibbon Jo Ann shared both her time and her talents. I was a newish member of Victoria Lawn Bowling Club and she helped coach me to be a more knowledgeable and technical player. For years she organized a group of us ladies to explore different Victoria restaurants for our winter monthly lunches. Jo Ann often brought samples of her art to events, including the book club, patiently answering our questions and remaining modest about her creative talents. As well as maintaining our website Jo Ann was invaluable in curating our bowling archives. She will be missed.
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Lesley Turner I am so sad to hear of Jo Ann’s passing. She will be missed by her many friends. As an expert in embroidery, she took the time to pass on her skills and knowledge to others. Those of us who benefitted from her generosity will continue to remember her whenever we take up the needle. Sincere condolences to her family.
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Alice Albert Thank you Jo Ann for all your encouragement and excellent courses enabling me to become a decent lawn bowler. You were direct and fun. Mind you you hated yellow bowls: and I bought some yellow balls (with green) which you actually did not mind.
Forever in my thoughts, Alice.
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Al and Marianne Siemens Al and I personally benefitted from JoAnn‘s generous commitment to so many aspects of the Victoria Lawn Bowling Club – Coaching clinics, tournament management, innovative ideas in player development and the website work, to name just a few of JoAnn‘s many contributions. I enjoyed her perspectives at Book Club as well. Her vitality will continue to be missed and we extend our condolences to her family as they move forward without her.
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Diana Caleb Jo Ann was a very talented fibre artist. Her work was beautiful and unique. I enjoyed our times together. My condolences to her family.
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Carole Costello I am very sorry to learn of Jo Ann’s death. When I was new to the VLBC and new to croquet, Jo Ann always mad me feel very welcome. I enjoyed our conversations and will miss seeing her at the club.
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Debra Whitman and Brian Wastenage Jo Ann will be truly missed. She was inspiring with her detailed and intricate art pieces, her dedication to the Victoria Lawn Bowling Club, and her willingness to delve into hard work and give her time and skills to many diverse aspects of life. Her work with the genealogy club of Victoria provided many people with historical knowledge otherwise not shared. We are so grateful to have had her in our lives.
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Rev. Don Allan Having spent many years bowling with and against Jo Ann at VLBC I must say I always have had an appreciation for her love of the sport and her ongoing contribution to the development of the website and coaching other members. She was a great blessing to our club and will be missed.
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Norma Alison So sad to learn of Jo Ann’s death. Sincere condolences to her family. Jo Ann was a friendly and active member of the Victoria Lawn Bowling Club. She generously volunteered many hours in so many ways over the years. Her bowling skills were formidable and recently she excelled at croquet, a game new to the club. As a good friend and fellow club member Jo Ann will be missed. Sincerely.
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Jack Trueman I am so sorry to hear of Jo Ann’s passing. I did not know her well but spent some time with her developing a bowling tournament program in which she demonstarted her eagerness to learn and take on new challenges. I and I’m sure all of her friends in the bowling community will miss her greatly. My sincere condolences to her family.
I was saddened to hear about Jo Ann’s death. My sympathies to her family and friends. Jo Ann was very kind to me in my first year of bowls. Her many contributions to the club will be missed.