JoAnn Harper went home to Jesus on February 19, 2023 at the age of 81.

JoAnn was born in San Diego, California to Melvin and Edith Farr on January 27, 1942. As a child, JoAnn spoke of her adventures traveling by train with her father who worked on the railroad which took her family to Colorado then later back to California, where she graduated from Life Bible College with a degree in Ministry. In her journey of Loving of the Lord, JoAnn also came to know and love her husband Gary through the church. They married on January 6th, 1968 and went on to have 3 beautiful daughters, LeeAnn, Jenny and Kristy. While raising their girls, they moved multiple times between California and Oregon before finally settling down in Canby, Oregon in 1986. It was in her Canby home that JoAnn became a grandma, but not just for her daughter's children. For the next 30 years, JoAnn loved and cared for a  community of children from her home daycare where she made lasting relationships with the kids and families. At any free opportunity, JoAnn loved to craft and create and was a crowd favorite at the World's Largest Christmas Bazaar for her homemade stocking stuffers and crocheted goods. JoAnn and Gary raised a family that loved Disney deeply and they made every effort to take trips as much as they could. Even when they couldn't, the Disney magic could always be felt, seen and heard in their home. After the loss of her husband in 2011, JoAnn continued on in her home independently, and stubbornly, for another 10 years before deciding to live with her daughter LeeAnn, and her family, to have comfort and help.  In the last year of her life, JoAnn was surrounded by her family as she fought fiercely through multiple cancer and dementia diagnoses. In her final days JoAnn rarely had a moment to rest as her room was always full of visitors and loved ones sharing their stories, gratitude and admiration for such an incredible person who left a lifelong impact.  Throughout her entire life, she held an unwavering faith in God, which she shared with those who surrounded her.

JoAnn joins Gary and her parents, Gary's parents, her brother and brother-in-law and a nephew in Heaven. She is survived by her daughters, son-in-laws, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. 

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