Joan Joyce Perry

Joy Perry was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, July 14, 1930. She died on June 19, 2020, after a long illness. She was preceded in death by her husband, Grant Edward Perry, and parents, Hans Christian Jacobsen and Adeline Annie Ranger Jacobsen, her brother Chris Jacobsen, and her sister Barbara Wood. She is survived by her sister Margaret Kehrer, by her children and their spouses, Sara and Ken Wood, Rachel and Jimmy Sanders, John Hindman, Mary and Scott Opdahl, Ruth and Edd Richards, and by her stepchildren and their spouses Sandra Martin, Sharon and Larry Hicks, and Emily Redditt, her grandchildren, Brendan Wood, Rachel Wood, Erin Killian, Jackie Killian, John Hindman Jr., Eric Hindman, Milo Opdahl, and Anna Opdahl, along with their spouses and six great-grandchildren, step-grandchildren Debbie Shanks, Rodney Martin, Karren Gitchell, Robert Craymer, Jeff Hicks, Jennifer Little, Allison Dynamite, who remembered Mom teaching her how to make quesadillas and root beer floats, John Price, Michael Redditt Jr., Michelle Tate, Tiffany Terry, and Dawn Buckland, along with their spouses. She also leaves behind 21 great-grandchildren and four great-great-grandchildren on Grant’s side, as well as many wonderful in-laws. The family would also like to acknowledge the attentive and loving care of her full time caregiver, Denise Varde, over the last 1 ½ years of her life, and of Norma Hernandez, who cared for her on weekends during several months of her last year.

Joan was a Girl Scout. In 1954, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics degree from the University of Cincinnati, and worked as a computer programmer for many years, including for Univac, at the Johnson Space Center, prior to her retirement. Her first husband was David Roy Hindman, whom she married in 1956. They had five children together. They divorced in 1967, and he preceded her in death in 1997. In 1985, she married Grant Edward Perry, and they were happily married until his death in 2011. From 1984 to 1985 she was the Chair of the Clear Lake Council of Technical Societies, and was the program chair of the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association (NARFE). She was a member of St. Stephen Presbyterian Church, Lord of Life Lutheran Church, and of Covenant Lutheran Church. She and Grant were members of the YMCA in The Woodlands, and of Poets Northwest.

She will be remembered for being a loving mother who encouraged her children to become educated and trust in God. She believed in treating all people well, and went on peace marches and volunteered at the local library. She loved reading, singing and writing poetry, as well as picnics. She has asked that in her memory, people donate to the individual charity of their choice. She will be greatly missed.

Her memorial service will be on Wednesday, July 1st, at 11:00 a.m. at Brookside Funeral Home, 9149 Highway 6 N, Houston, TX 77095, with burial at Houston National Cemetery at 2:00 p.m. the same day.