Jo Ann Shera

Jo Ann Tucker Shera was born in Byrd, Texas in 1931. Her father, R. B. Tucker, worked for the Humble Pipeline Company and like many oil company families, she, her mother, Carmetie, and older brother, Dan followed him throughout the panhandle of Texas. Several of her childhood memories were from her years in Wink. With war-clouds looming in the early 1940s, the family moved to be closer to other family in the Houston suburb of Galena Park. There she attended High School, graduating in 1949, and going on to the University of Texas in Austin studying Chemistry for two years. Following her physician's advice, she moved to the West Texas town of El Paso in search of a dryer climate. After a short time working at White Sands Missile Range, she earned her license as a medical laboratory technician. She worked in El Paso area hospitals and doctors' offices for many years, enjoying the work and the interaction with patients. She met her husband-to-be and Fort Bliss soldier, Arthur Shera at a Luther League dance. They were married in 1956.

Art and Jo Ann had two children, David Michael, born in 1959 and Carma Lee, born in 1961. Arthur passed away in October of 2014.

Jo Ann loved to travel. The family traveled all over the western United States, often in a borrowed tent-trailer. After David and Carma had moved away, Jo Ann and Art still continued to travel, visiting Hawaii, Alaska, Mexico and Canada. They also went overseas; visiting New Zealand, Switzerland and Kenya. Jo Ann loved photography, and made beautiful, detailed scrapbooks of the people and places they visited.

Jo Ann was very creative, and passionate about whatever hobby she was pursuing. Whether it was rock tumbling, jewelry-making, quilting, needlepoint, or stained glass, she made many beautiful things, many of them reflecting her long interest in hot-air balloons. She brought some of the beauty in her soul out to the world around her.

She brought the same intensity to all her endeavors, from teaching Sunday school to decorating the cabin she and Art purchased in New Mexico, to giving tours of the El Paso Museum of Art. She always put herself fully into everything she did; and expected the same dedication of those around her.

As her memory declined in the past few years, she grew to depend on Arthur more and more. Finally, when he passed away, she moved up to Colorado to a Memory care facility close to Carma. There she soon became part of the community; helping those who couldn't walk very well down the hall, or helping fold napkins or towels. She enjoyed the pet therapy, music therapy, painting, and getting cards and letters from friends back home.

She passed away peacefully in her sleep on March 11, 2017. She is survived by children David and Carma, and grandchildren Jonathan Zimmerman, Michael Zimmerman, Marcus Shera, and Miriam Shera. She will be missed by all who knew her.

Funeral Service, Saturday, March 25, 2017 in El Paso, Texas. Visit bohlenderfuneralchapel.com to view the full obituary and send condolences.