JoAnn Stewart Lewis Kirkham Obituary (1939

JoAnn Stewart was born on April 4, 1939 in Salt Lake City, Utah. She was the second child of Raymond Riggs Stewart and Ava Beckstrand Stewart. Her childhood was mostly spent in Orem, Utah. She has many fond memories of summers spent in Provo Canyon with her cousins, winters helping with Timp Haven ski resort (the family business her father built that later became Sundance), and picking cherries for work and getting paid 3 cents per pound. She attended Spencer School, Lincoln Junior High School, and was in the first graduating class of Orem High School. JoAnn took lots of secretarial classes in high school and also went one quarter to BYU. She went to work at the Geneva steel plant as a secretary and became the highest paid secretary there at the time. While there, one of her co-workers set her up on a blind date with Ronald J Lewis. They dated and were married about a year later in December of 1959 in the Salt Lake Temple. Ron finished his degree at BYU and they moved to Hayward and then Pacifica, California where she was a homemaker and dad was an elementary school principal. Their family was blessed with 4 children, Pamala, Paul, Randy, and Rebecca. Mom taught piano lessons to many students in California and taught herself to play the organ. She was very famous for her cinnamon rolls and for making hundreds of gingerbread houses that she shared with neighbors. She was a proud member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and served in many callings in music, Primary, Young Women, and Scouting. She and dad were very supportive of the scouting program and both received the Silver Beaver award for their help on the district level. They were very proud of the fact that every grandson and one great grandson were able to receive their Eagle Scout award. Mom helped to support her family and children while they were going through college. She worked as a secretary for the local school district in California, a secretary to a judge, and then 8 years as a legal secretary to Elder Quentin Cook. Mom and dad retired to Orem, Utah in 1992. Grandchildren remember doing puzzles with grandma, otter pops in their freezer, and especially “Grandma cookie day” in December making their own plate of sugar cookies with no parents invited. Mom and dad served four senior missions for their church, serving in Suriname, Belgium, Arizona, and the Netherlands. Dad spoke Dutch due to his mission in his youth to the Netherlands while mom learned Dutch on her own in Suriname. She taught herself Dutch by using Primary songs. Even at the end of her life she would use the Dutch word for ‘no’ (nee) instead of English. Dad died in 2010 and mom remained very lonely. She met Robert William Kirkham working in the Timpanogos Temple and they married in December of 2012. She moved to his home in Lehi where she felt very welcomed by his family and ward. The city girl enjoyed learning about sheep and lambs on his small farm there. She also learned a lot about rodeos. Mom’s greatest legacy is her love for her family and her testimony of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She read the Book of Mormon over 50 times in her life and still wanted her scriptures close even when her eyesight caused her to have a difficult time reading. She wanted her children and grandchildren to know that she has a testimony of Jesus Christ as her Savior. Mom passed into eternity on Tuesday, October 8, 2024 while living at Covington Assisted Living Center in Orem, Utah. She is survived by her siblings Barbara, Craig, and Suzan, husband Robert Kirkham, and four children Pamala (Lee) Aston, Paul (Sara) Lewis, Randy (Cynthia) Lewis, and Rebecca (Daniel) Byerly. Also, by 20 grandchildren and 34 great grandchildren with 3 more to soon join the family. She was preceded in death by her parents Ray and Ava Stewart, and her husband Ronald J Lewis. Services will be held on Saturday, October 19, 2024 at the Lehi 1st Ward building, 220 West 200 South, Lehi, Utah at 11 am with a viewing held from 9:30 to 10:45. Interment to follow at Eastlawn Memorial Hills Cemetery, 4800 North 650 East, Provo, Utah. Condolences may be expressed to the family at www.bergmortuary.com.