Jo Ann Seitz was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, oldest child of Edgar and Bertha Seitz, and died peacefully on December 4, 2024, in Chattanooga.
Jo Ann grew up and graduated from high school in Ooltewah, Tn. She attended Clark College, in Atlanta, Georgia. Jo Ann in the late 50s moved to Boston, Massachusetts where she worked for the John Hancock Insurance Company. Years later she transitioned to United Airlines and then moved with the company from Boston, Ma., to Fort Lee, New Jersey.
Jo Ann loved to travel with her sister, Shirley. They traveled extensively to Europe and the Middle East. Jo Ann and Shirley made friends world-wide and brought family on some of their travel adventures.
Jo Ann loved classical music, the arts, and her family. She connected with the children of her relatives and contributed to deepening these cousins’ world view by providing exposure to arts and culture. As cousins attended college in the Virginia area and as family drove through Virginia Jo Ann welcomed them. She made her home “the home” for relatives and friends. She prepared meals, packed baskets of food for travelers, and often gave up her bed so the travelers might rest more easily.
While she had no children to engage and encourage in the arts, Jo Ann’s love for the arts became her personal focus. She created beautiful needlework and works of arts and crafts, which she gifted to family and friends. For Christmas, Jo Ann purchased ornaments from the White House in Washington D.C., selected specifically for the family member and for the history the ornament depicted. Jo Ann found special joy in God and was a dedicated and active member of The Galilee United Methodist Church in Sterling, Va.
Jo Ann with her sister devoted hundreds of hours and their talents to the church providing needed support to weekly church services.
Jo Ann, retired from United Airlines and spent many happy years living in Virginia. Then, 2022 while working to recover from several bouts of serious illnesses, Jo Ann and her sister Shirley moved to Chattanooga, to live with their brother and sister-in-law, Jeffrey and Rosemary Seitz.
Jo Ann, a woman whose life exhibits unspoken strength, was predeceased by her parents, Edgar and Bertha Seitz, her loving brother, Donald Henderson (Darlene) and niece Donyale Henderson. She leaves behind her much beloved sister, Shirley Seitz and her brother, Jeffrey Seitz (Rosemary) and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, and other relatives, all who will mourn her loss.
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, May 31, at Hampton Inn Chattanooga East Ridge, 623 Camp Jordan Parkway, East Ridge, Tn. 37412 at 2:30 p.m.
Arrangements are provided by Hardwick & Sons Funeral Home, www.hardwickfuneral.com, 2521 Duncan Ave., Chattanooga, Tn. 37404, 423 267-1244.