Joanne (Jody) Simpson

October 29, 1926 - September 7, 2015

Joanne (Jody) K. Simpson died on September 7 at the Oregon Veteran’s Home in Lebanon, OR, after a long battle with Alzheimer’s Disease. Jody was formerly from Sunnyside, WA, but had moved to Corvallis, OR, in 2010 to be closer to family. Jody was born on October 29, 1926, in Lustre, MT to James Tade and Grace Branley Tade. She spent her early years on farms in northeastern Montana, near the towns of Lustre, Richland and Scoby. Her dad became employed at the Fort Peck Dam and they lived in Park Grove, MT and Nashua, MT. When Jody was about 16 years old the family moved to Irrigon, OR. After WWII, the Tade family moved to Sunnyside, WA where Jody began working at Valley Hay and Implement Company. It is there that she met Norman Simpson. The two were married in 1947. Norman and Jody became parents over the years to six children, Norm Jr, Chuck, Dennis, Mary Jo, Cathy and Mike. Norman and Jody made their home in Sunnyside for many years. Jody was a wonderful mother who took great pride in her home. She was a wonderful cook and made delicious family meals. Her home was always immaculate and organized. She and Norman provided a very stable and loving home for their family. Jody also took great pride in working outside the home. She loved her work at the accounting firms of Glen Rasmussen; Boyd, Olofson and Co. and Sunnyside Valley Irrigation District. She loved the work and she forged many strong and lasting relationships with the women she worked with. Those relationships lasted throughout her life and included activities as traveling to the Oregon Coast each fall, fishing off the coast of Mexico and traveling to other countries. Jody was also a wonderful Grandmother. She would provide fun activities at different holidays for her family to partake in and often would take some of her grandchildren on a summer adventure to learn about local places of interest. Combine her great cooking with some fun activities and many wonderful memories were created. Jody loved to work in the yard and her garden was a source of great pride for her and also very beautiful to see. Jody is survived by her sister, Mary Patnode, of Lacey, Washington; son, Norm Jr (Linda) of Vancouver, Wa; daughter –in-law, Suzy Simpson, of Sunnyside, WA; daughter, Mary Jo Simpson of Spokane WA; daughter, Cathy (Robert) Shreeve of Corvallis, OR, several grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Interment will be in Sunnyside in October.