Rogers Co. Obit for: Joanne (Wright) Greggs ************************************************************************ http://www.usgwarchives.net/ok/rogers/rogers.htm Rogers County Archivist: Bill Cook, billcook44@aol.com Submitted to the Rogers County Oklahoma Archives Date: 2/01/2003 by: Bill Cook, billcook44@aol.com ************************************************************************ USGENWEB ARCHIVES NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. http://www.usgwarchives.net ************************************************************************ 1/11/2003 Joanne Greggs Memorial service for Joanne Greggs will be 11 a.m. Monday, Jan. 13, 2003, at First United Methodist Church, Claremore, with Rev. Ray Crawford officiating. Joanne died Thursday, Jan. 9, 2003. She was 72. Joanne Wright Greggs was born in Muskogee on October 14, 1930, the second daughter of two gifted artists, Claude and Gladys Wright. She grew up in Muskogee and after her sophomore year in high school her family moved to Pawhuska. It was there her father opened Claude's, his own department store. It was where she met and fell in love with a handsome, young man a year older than she, Bill Greggs. They were married April 1, 1950. The couple made several moves the first few years of their marriage and began their family with Claudia being born in 1952, Kay in 1955, and the surprise member of the family, Chris in 1962. In addition to being a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, and faithful friend, Joanne was an artist, decorator, floral arranger and antique dealer. She passionately loved decorating her home and she made anyplace they lived home. She had a special knack for that. She loved preparing delicious, beautifully served meals and entertaining. Along with creating a warm and beautiful home, Joanne had the gift of hospitality. Anyone who entered her home was received as a guest and treated to a cup of coffee and delightful refreshment. Gracious living was truly Joanne's hallmark. In 1961, Bill took a job in Tulsa. Ten years later they moved to Claremore where they have lived 32 years. Joanne made this community home and grew to love it almost as much as her beloved Pawhuska. Although she made frequent trips to Pawhuska to visit friends and familiar places, she was a huge promoter and lover of Claremore as a wonderful place to live. Joanne found numerous ways to express her creativity and artistic talents throughout the years. She has had two antique and gift shops in Claremore, Fringe Benefit, and Attic Treasures. She maintained several antique booths, which proved to be her outlet for expressing creative ideas and for nurturing the yearning to sell and merchandise just as she learned from her father. Not only did she love decorating her own home, but that of many others in the community. She loved making flower arrangements and doing special altar decorations for the church. Her unique touch could be found throughout her home, in her antique booth, in her beautiful table settings, or even in the way she dressed. She was a true sales and merchandising master. She reveled in the joy of finding a bargain and passing it on to someone else and she did that with her business, Joanne's Private Collection. She found something beautiful in everything she did and she looked for beauty wherever she went. Joanne was a beautiful woman inside and out. She radiated the love of the Lord and she shared that with everyone she knew. Her own family learned to love and trust the Lord by her own life story and her example. Her love and reverence for the Lord ran deep inside her. It was this deep, abiding love that became her strength and peace during these past few months. Not only did she find the strength of the Lord in Him, but in the many loving and faithful family and friends who kept a vigil around her. Her lifetime friend, Geraldine sent her a card every single day in the mail. She loved her church and her Sunday School Class, the Pickett Class, brought home-cooked meals for weeks on end. Faithful friends from PEO and Questers brought meals. Numerous friends and neighbors called, wrote, stopped by, and prayed. It was with this loving support of family and friends, and the protective arms of the Lord, that she went home to be with Him. She is survived by her husband of 52 years, Bill of the home, daughters, Claudia Pierce and her husband Dean, and Kay Johnson, both of Claremore, son, Chris, of Tulsa, nine grandchildren, Katie and Josh Hope, Chelsea Driver, Jessica, Erica, and Davis Johnson, and Chris, Will, and Selena Greggs, all of Claremore, and a sister, Norma Russell of Tulsa. Memorial contributions may be made to the First United Methodist Church, 1615 N. Highway 88, Claremore, OK 74017. ************************************************************************* Transcribed from the Claremore Progess Newspaper, we sincerely thank them for allowing us to post these obits on the Rogers Co., OK USGenwebpages http://www.claremoreprogress.com/ copyright c 2002-2003, by webmaster Rogers Co. Arhchives Bill Cook billcook44@aol.com *************************************************************************