Joanne Morris Ford

on Friday, August 21, 2015. She was born December 28, 1935, and was the child of the late

Joseph Lawrence Morris and Elizabeth Sanders Morris.

Joanne was a happy, optimistic, and friendly woman who took pride in her physical

achievements. She lettered in basketball at Druid Hills High School as a starting forward in the

Red Devils team that went to the finals of the Georgia State Tournament. Joanne attended Druid

Hills School from first grade through high school and still maintained relationships with fellow

students from that school. She later attended the University of Florida and Emory University,

where she was the women’s intramural table tennis champion, later defeating the men’s

champion for bragging rights on campus.

She was a proud horsewoman, with a special affection for quarter horses. One of the quarter

horses she raised, Willie, was a national grand champion. Joanne rode in many horse shows and

rodeo events, and deeply regretted having to eventually give up riding and her horses, but she

still had Willie at her death. She was skilled in self defense and some of her experiences

involving application of these skills have become family legends.

Joanne enjoyed her membership in the American Quarter Horse Association, the Georgia

Quarter Horse Association, and Kappa Alpha Theta Fraternity. She had retired as a Marketing

Coordinator for Hitachi Data Systems.

Joanne is survived by her husband, Michael C. Ford, her two sons, Darrell O. Grimes (Cindy) of

Alpharetta, Georgia, and Gregory L. Grimes of Smyrna, Georgia and her brother, George

Sanders Morris (Joan) of Tucker, Georgia, as well as four grandchildren, Bradford Grimes and

Gary Grimes of Alpharetta, Georgia, Jeffrey Grimes and Jennifer Grimes of Dunwoody, Georgia,

and one step-son, Taylor C. Ford of Hull, Georgia. She will also be missed by the two dogs she

loved, Jazzy and Bear.

The family of Joanne will receive friends Sunday, August 23rd, from 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM at H.

M. Patterson and Son Funeral Home, Oglethorpe Hill, located at 4550 Peachtree Road in

Brookhaven, Georgia. A Memorial Service to celebrate her life will be held at 2:00 PM,

immediately after the visitation, in the Chapel at Patterson’s Oglethorpe Hill.

In lieu of flowers, a donation may be made to the Susan B. Komen Fight Against Breast Cancer.