Shirley Ann St. John

BLOOMINGTON — Shirley Jorgensen St. John, 88, of Bloomington, died on November 19, 2019, at Meadowood Health Pavilion.

Born July 29, 1931, in Chicago, Illinois, she was the daughter of Verner and Nelle Jorgensen. She graduated from Kankakee High School in 1949, and from the University of Illinois in 1953.

Shirley met Wendell St. John in their ninth grade science club. They wed on October 6, 1956, and were married for 63 years.

Shirley was an adventurous explorer of the world. She lived in Germany for several years in the 1950s while Wendell attended the University of Heidelberg, and returned in the 1980s to live in Frankfurt and Berlin while working for the Institute of Cultural Affairs (ICA), an international community development organization. While working for the Institute, she lived and worked in Japan for fifteen years.

Shirley retired from the ICA in the early 1990s. She and Wendell moved to Bloomington to live near their three adult children, David, Ann and Jane.

Shirley believed in living her faith through acts of service. She was active in the First United Methodist Church (FUMC) in the 1990s in establishing the Shalom Community Center where she was a founder and first board president. She was active in several Habitat for Humanity Women Builds. She enjoyed being a member of Phoebe Circle at FUMC.

She is survived by her husband, Wendell St. John; son, David St. John (Karin) of Bloomington; daughter, Jane St. John (Robert Woolford) of Bloomington; son-in-law, Michael May; four grandchildren, Alex St. John, Emma St. John, Sarah Woolford and Benjamin Woolford; and three step-grandchildren, Charles Samson May, Maryellen May and Michael May.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her daughter, Ann St. John; and step-grandson, Zachary Paul May.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, November 30, 2019, at First United Methodist Church in Bloomington. Visitation at 1:00 p.m. followed by the service at 2:00 p.m. Reception will follow.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Shalom Community Center at www.shalomcommunitycenter.org or 620 S. Walnut Street, Bloomington, 47401.