Joan Johnson

Joan Marie Shepherd Johnson of Corning, Iowa, peacefully passed away February 15, 2010, at the Cass County Memorial Hospital in Atlantic, Iowa. She was born December 7, 1960, in Fargo, North Dakota, the daughter of Roger and Leora Pollock Shepherd. She lived in Salem, Oregon, until moving with her family to Cumberland, Iowa, in 1975. She attended C&M School and was a member of the class of 1979.


Joan was employed at Odin's restaurant, the Atlantic Golf and Country Club and was a home daycare provider.

She married Wayne Priester in 1982 and they later divorced. She moved to Glenwood and was a nanny for the Julia Snyder family for a time. In 1993, Joan moved to Corning and was employed at Place's and also as a medical transcriptionist at Alegent Health Mercy Hospital.

On July 7, 2007, Joan was married to Thomas Johnson at Lake Icaria near Corning. She was a marathon shopper, loved to eat seafood and Italian food, a people watcher and self proclaimed "cat lady".

She endured Crohn's Disease for most of her life and fought cancer for the past 3 ½ years, but did her best to keep a positive attitude and remained outspoken throughout.

Joan Johnson is survived by her husband Thomas Johnson of Corning, Iowa; sisters, Janet Selim of Atlantic, Iowa, and Julie (Dan) Swanson of Seattle, Washington; nephews, Robert Foss of Fontanelle, Iowa, whom she helped raise, and Vern Johnson of Phoenix, Arizona; niece, Stephanie (Bobby) Colton of Atlantic, Iowa; great nieces, Kacie and Kayla Foss of Council Bluffs, Iowa, and Chamilla and Josie Colton of Atlantic, Iowa; great nephew, Zach Colton of Atlantic, Iowa; stepchildren Allen (Beth) Johnson of Oakland, Iowa, and Amber Foss of Council Bluffs, Iowa; and many cousins. She is also survived by friends that she considered family; Julie Edwards of Cumberland, Iowa, Debbie Buffington of Corning, Iowa, and Julia Snyder of Atlantic, Iowa, and their families.

Joan was preceded in death by her parents Roger and Leora Shepherd; brothers, Douglas, Steven and David; grandparents, Roy and Joan Pollock and Ralph and Ethel Shepherd; and brothers-in-law, Tom Quinn and Don Selim.

Joan's wish was to be cremated. A memorial service will be held at 2:30 p.m., Saturday, February 27, 2010, at Hockenberry Family Care, Atlantic, Iowa. There will be no scheduled visitation but a luncheon in Hockenberry's Community Room will follow the memorial service.