JoAnne Goode, born JoAnne Ashe on May 24th 1933 in New York City, died on December 6th 2022 in Rydal, Georgia.
JoAnne’s parents divorced when she was two, and her early years were spent living with her mother Thelma, her widowed Aunt Jai, and her dear cousin, Dick, in Manhattan. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, her mother answered the call to service, and they moved to Washington D.C. JoAnne loved exploring near their apartment on Columbia Road and found a home in St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church. But being an only child, with her mother working long hours in support of the war effort, she spent much time alone. When she was off to boarding school or summer camp or her grandmother’s home in Pilot Mountain, NC, she was frequently put on a train with a tag listing her destination. It was likely these trips that gave her a taste for adventure.
After school, a real adventure presented itself – a move to Fairbanks in the Territory of Alaska. She packed up her Singer sewing machine and set off. Once there, life was not particularly easy but she did meet a man named Bill who worked as an air traffic controller at the new Fairbanks International Airport. They remained friends for years. He taught her how to drive on the frozen Chena River and they took gold-panning class at the University. When she moved to Seattle for work, Bill missed her desperately and kept trying to find a job for her in Fairbanks. When that failed, he sent her a letter saying “You could always come back and marry me.” Despite the fact that he was 18 years her senior and they had never even kissed, she said yes.
That was the beginning of a love story that lasted the rest of their lives. They claimed a homestead just outside of Fairbanks and began the process of “proving up” on their claim. They met other homesteaders living nearby and became lifelong friends as they worked together to survive in the wilderness. This also meant living on the property, with no running water, during the years that their first three children were infants. Bill and JoAnne loved to tell stories about their time in Alaska and every year the family would sit down for a slide show of the pictures that Bill had taken to send back to his family in Georgia.
In 1965, as JoAnne was pregnant (with what turned out to be twins), the family transferred to Homestead, Florida. They lived there for a short time before Bill was medically retired. Then they set out to fulfill another dream. Bill purchased his siblings’ shares of the Rydal, Georgia property they grew up on. He and JoAnne moved their family of seven to the farm where they spent years raising cattle and growing produce. After the birth of their sixth child, JoAnne went back to work at Pine Log Elementary School, where she would remain for decades.
By the time of Bill’s death in 1995, JoAnne was raising her granddaughter and caring for her sister-in-law. But she still sought adventure and made many trips to Europe to visit her daughter who was serving in the Navy. She was a passionate environmentalist and loved electric cars. Throughout her years in Rydal, she remained active in Pine Log United Methodist Church, and particularly loved the annual Campmeeting. She had a faith that gave her great peace and was admired by all who knew her.
JoAnne was predeceased by Bill. She is survived by her sons Harley & Carter; her daughters Myra Pellegrini, Hope McCauley, Helen Kanturek & Christy Cowan; her granddaughters Jessica Gonzalez, Cristina Sims, Jennifer McCauley, Ariel Martin, Haley McCauley, Madison Lloyd, Anna Grace Goode, Kylee McCauley, Alexandra Kanturek, Chloe Cowan & Cora Cowan; her grandsons Adam Pellegrini, Will Goode, Max McCauley, Charlie Goode & Callum Cowan; her great-granddaughters Abigail Williams, Caroline Gonzalez, Lorraine Martin, & Catherine Gonzalez; and great-grandsons Kohl Williams, Kashton Frazier & Benjamin Gonzalez. Bill and JoAnne’s highest priority was family and their greatest wish was for their family to remain close. Their tradition of weekly Goode Sunday lunch continues at the homes of their children and grandchildren and has grown in size to over 30 family members.
Services will be held at 1 pm on Sunday, December 18th at Pine Log United Methodist Church with a reception to follow. Instead of flowers, donations may be made to Pine Log UMC Campground Fund, in her memory. Condolences may be left with Georgia Funeral Services.
