JoAnn Rouse Obituary (1927 - 2015) - Bloomington, Illinois

JoAnn Rouse, 87, formerly of Bloomington, passed away at 6:30 a.m., Wednesday, July 15, 2015 at Heritage Health in El Paso.Her memorial service will be at 1:00 p.m., Saturday, July 18, 2015 at Carmody-Flynn Funeral Home, Bloomington with Rev. Ken Martin officiating. Interment will be in Wakefield Cemetery, Wakefield, Nebraska at a later date.Memorials may be directed to Alzheimers Association. Jo Ann was born July 29, 1927 in Clearwater, Nebraska, the daughter of Verne and Ilda Magness Taylor. She married Phil Rouse on August 17, 1948. He preceded her in death on April 11, 1997.She is survived by a son, Phillip Charles (Christine) Rouse of Shawnee, Kansas, two daughters, Peggi (Bob) McCue of Norfolk, NE and Susan (Doug) Verplank of Bloomington, IL; five grandsons, Anthony (Danielle) Brown, Cory (Bree) Brown, Michael Rouse, Brett Verplank and Brandon (Kayla) Harder; six granddaughters, Megan (Ben) Nissen, Ashley (Ben) Dolk, Courtney Harder, Brittany Rouse, Macie Rouse and Katherine Rouse; eleven great grandchildren; a brother, Jerry Taylor, two sisters, Peggy Chocholousek and Judy Gaeth; and many nieces, nephews and dear friends.She was preceded in death by a brother, Chuck Taylor.JoAnns pride was receiving her B.A. in Education in 1963 and her M.A. in Education in 1968 from Wayne State College in Nebraska. She dedicated her life to the education of her students. She taught every level from kindergarten through college courses over a period of 28 years. Her favorite subject was English and she delighted in teaching Shakespeare.JoAnn loved life and helped raise her siblings. She was an avid Husker fan. She enjoyed golfing, reading, puzzles and was a tenacious bridge player. In her later years, she loved to paint. JoAnn had a voracious memory and quest for knowledge. She liked to visit and enjoyed a good argument. Most of all, she loved her family and friends.