Our most loving and amazing Mother, JoAnne "Jo" Howard passed away peacefully on Saturday, June 28, 2014 at 7:30 pm at Bickford Cottage with family members at her side. Born in Indianapolis in 1928 to Stanley Palmer and Adelaide Mayer Hayes and married to Crawfordsville attorney Franklin Nathaniel Howard until his death in May 2003, she is survived by daughters Jolynn (Jerry) Dreyer, Cecie (Joe) Kraynak, and Laurie (Mike) Miller; grandchildren Chelsea (Nicole), Chase (Jessica) and Channing Miller, Keely (Ed) Dreyer Hitt, and Nick (Rosie) and Ali Kraynak; and great-grandchildren Cole Miller and Ashby Hitt. A celebration of life will be held at Crawfordsville First United Methodist Church on Thursday, July 3rd with a short service beginning promptly at 1:00 pm. Immediately following the family invites people to stay or attend a reception to follow from 1:30 to 4:30 pm.

Mrs. Howard graduated Magna Cum Laude from Indiana University with a major in Spanish. She was a member of the Phi Mu sorority and editor of Arbutus, the IU yearbook. She devoted her entire life to family and to the Crawfordsville community, where she was an active member in numerous organizations, including the Montgomery County Art League, Tri Kappa, Athenian Book Club, and Crawfordsville's First United Methodist Church. She and Frank were founding members of the Sugar Creek Players. Mrs. Howard started and served as head of the Montgomery County Court Referral Program, which she ran until she retired in 1991.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Animal Welfare League, 1104 Big Four Arch Rd., Crawfordsville, IN 47933, The Home for Friendless Animals, P O Box 217, Waynetown, IN 47990 or NAMI-WCI 1508 Tippecanoe Street Room 4-901 Lafayette, IN, 47904 which provides financial support for our local national Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) group here in Crawfordsville.