Joe Ann Clack

On December 26, 2023, Joe Ann Clack died after a long battle with Alzheimer's. She was 80 years old. Joe Ann is survived by her daughter Zoanne, her grandchildren Thelonious, Matisse & Sonata, and her godson Andrew Jason Rose. She was preceded in death by her biological parents Tommie Mae Bolton and Robert Jimmie Clack, Sr; her adoptive parents, Aislee Bolton and Jerry Maxey; her brother, Robert Jimmie Clack, Jr. and sister-in-law Gaylean Clack. Joe Ann was born on August 23, 1943 in San Augustine, TX. She graduated from Lincoln High School in San Augustine where she was "Miss Lincoln" in her senior year. She then went on to attend Texas College in Tyler, TX. One of her proudest accomplishments came during her time in college when she was inducted into Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. on December 14, 1963. She graduated in 1965 with a degree in Education and proceeded to take her first teaching job in NOME, ALASKA! Her courageous and independent spirit led her to go on to obtain her master's degree in Education from Texas Southern University in 1975. She rekindled a budding relationship and married in 1967, ending up in Stockton, CA with her military husband where she welcomed her first and only child, Zoanne, in 1968. After her divorce in 1978, she pressed on as a single mother, working both her regular day job as a high school business and typing teacher and nightly at Houston Community College, which is also where she worked during her summers. Even while juggling all of these jobs and motherhood, she managed to be a strong community member and political advocate. You could always find her volunteering at the voting polls, doing her civic duty. Additionally, served on the Briargate Community board and was picked as an RNC Congressional Delegate in 2000. And if that weren't enough, she was a sponsor for the FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America), PALS (Peer Assistance and Leadership), a senior class leader, and helped with the Willowridge cheerleading squad. It was not uncommon for Joe Ann to hold random sleepovers at her house with students piled all around. This is also what she did when hosting Thanksgiving dinners for the family - people stacked up everywhere in the first and only house she ever bought (and stayed in for 47 years). In 2003, Joe Ann retired after 40 years of teaching. She continued to volunteer at Willowridge and Bush High Schools and later was a founding member and 2007 inductee of the Willowridge Wall of Honor. Her passion for child advocacy led her to volunteer as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) in the Houston foster care system. She also kept herself busy with Lions Club, Fort Bend Emergency Medical Corps, various church activities at Westbury and with the Xi Alpha Omega chapter of her beloved AKA sorority. Come help us celebrate a life well lived as we hold Joe Ann's Celebration of Life at 11 am on January 6, 2024 at Westbury Church of Christ in Houston, TX. The family asks that donations be sent to the Alzheimer's Association in her memory and/or Leeza's Care Connection in lieu of flowers.