Jo Ann West was born in Memphis, Tennessee, on September 21, 1945, to John Edward and Josephine Sullivan West, who received her as a blessing and a gift from God.  Her father described her as such a talker that Josephine would have her accompany John Edward on long road trips he had to take for his work as a Veteran's Affair dentist, knowing that Jo Ann would keep him awake for the entire drive.  Jo Ann lived in many places as a child: Memphis, TN, Iuca, MS, Nashville, TN, Johnson City, TN, and Beckley, WV.

From her earliest days, Jo Ann knew she wanted to be two things: a nurse and a mother.  Leading a life of service and love was a direct testament to her faith.  She grew up in the Christian faith and entered the United Methodist fold at age 12, when she was invited to join the Methodist Youth Fellowship in Johnson City, TN, on the very day her family moved to town.  Jo Ann's faith was central to her life and fueled her desire to serve.

Jo Ann was not an only child for long, and three brothers soon followed: John Edward West Jr. (deceased), Terrence Flynn West, now of Kissimmee, Fl, and David Russell West, now of Johnson City, TN.  Jo Ann often said Terry and David were like her own kids, as she helped to raise them until she left for college.  She continued strong relationships with her brothers throughout their adult lives and loved them and their spouses, Nanette and Marlene, wholeheartedly.

After graduating from Science Hill High School in Johnson City, TN, in 1963, Jo Ann attended ETSU, then transferred and graduated from the College of Nursing at UT Memphis in 1967.

She began her nursing career at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, where she worked with children and infants when the mortality rate of patients was 95%.  She recently shared with pride that the mortality rate at St. Jude's is now 5%.

After a short stint in Beckley, WV, Jo Ann furthered her education at Emory University, where she graduated in 1970 with a Masters in Nursing (MSN) with a focus on Maternal and Child Health (MCH).  She taught nursing at Georgia State University and helped write the self-study for the accreditation of the nursing program there.  During her time as a clinical specialist in the NICU at Grady Memorial Hospital of Atlanta, then-Governor Jimmy Carter appointed Jo Ann to the Georgia Governor's Maternal Infant Council; she also served on the March of Dimes maternal Infant Blue Ribbon Commission.

Jo Ann then taught at Emory University and was invited to provide speeches on neonatal ICUs throughout Georgia, at the McBride Symposium at Duke University, at Vanderbilt, and at UT Memphis.  During that time, Jo Ann also completed tours of duty out of the US and Japan while serving as a flight nurse in the US Air Force, nursing to wounded soldiers being airlifted home during the Vietnam War.  Her early work at St. Jude's, in NICUs, and nursing soldiers impacted her outlook on life and she truly accepted each day as a gift and lived a life of gratitude.

After marrying, Jo Ann became mother to Scott and Julie. As her career shifted away from full-time nursing and toward parenting and homemaking, her life of service continued.  She volunteered for the American Red Cross, teaching CPR classes and mother/baby classes, worked at Northside Hospital, Atlanta, with Sudden Infant Death cases and apnea monitoring, and was a volunteer for their hospice.  She volunteered actively at Montgomery Elementary, Kittredge Magnet, and Marist School, where her sewing skills were especially valuable to the school's theatrical productions.

Jo Ann returned to full-time work and resumed her education following the dissolution of her marriage, earning a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner degree at Emory University in 1995.  She worked as a nurse at Westminster Schools before and during the program, and then began a 17-year-long career at Children's Medicine of Lawrenceville, GA.

During her time in Atlanta, she was an active member of St. James United Methodist Church, where she remained until 2021 when, after moving to Waynesboro, VA, she soon found her church home at Main Street United Methodist.  At St. James, she participated in Sunday School and Disciple classes, helped with summer Bible school programming, needlepointed kneelers and the 7 Days of Creation, participated in a tutoring program, and provided lay pastoral care and prayer.   She found great support and strength from the "Prayer Warriors," a team of women who lifted her up through life's highs and lows, especially during her battle with endometrial serous carcinoma.  Although she only joined Main Street UMC a few years ago, she quickly found her niche, knitting prayer shawls, helping to make special ornaments, and contributing to food deliveries for shut-ins, even when she herself was mostly house-bound.  She continued to faithfully attend services online following her cancer diagnosis.

Jo Ann will be remembered for her love for her family, her loyalty to her close friends, her life of service and faith, her joyful and down-to-earth approach to life, her determination and productivity, her organizational skills and ability to keep a beautiful house, her world travels, her impressive Rummikub skills, her love of art and music, and her compassionate care as a nurse.  The nurses, doctors, and aides who worked with her during her cancer journey will remember her for her kindness, as she asked them about their own lives and families even as she suffered through treatments herself.  Jo Ann made sure those she loved knew that she felt blessed to be their mother, aunt, Grammy Jo, or friend.  She lived a beautiful life and never neglected to thank God for all of these blessings.

She was preceded in death by her parents, John Edward West (2006) and Josephine West (2020), and her brother Johnny West (1969).  She is survived by her siblings Terry West (Nanette), David West (Marlene), her children Scott Goldman (Lisa) and Julie Caran (Kevin), her grandchildren Robyn, Sadie, and Max Goldman and Abinet and Colette Caran, nieces and nephews John West (Kristine), Charmaine Otto (Michael), James West (Ashley), Katherine Masters (Drew), and their children.

In lieu of flowers, Jo Ann asked that donations be made to Smile Train and St. Jude's.

Jo Ann's family would like to thank the members of UVA Emily Couric Cancer Center, UVA Augusta, and especially the incredible nurses, doctors, and social workers at Hospice of the Shenandoah.

A Memorial Service will be held 10:00 a.m. Thursday June 26th , 2025 at Main Street United Methodist Church officiated by Chaplain Steven Henderson with Military Honors by the United States Air Force and the Nursing Honor Guard of Augusta County.