Joann Foster

Joann Lois Evans Foster passed away peacefully on January 11, 2023 at the age of 91. Joann was born on December 23, 1931, and raised by her adoring parents, Minnie and Ward Evans. She had an idyllic childhood in several small West and Central Texas towns, eventually graduating at age 16 from high school in Breckenridge, Texas. She graduated from Southwestern University, where she was a member of Alpha Delta Pi sorority. At Southwestern, she met her soulmate, John Foster, and they were wed on campus at Perkins Chapel on December 18, 1951. Through her early married years, Joann lived in Houston where John pursued his medical training, and she taught school. She loved being in the big city and forged lifelong friendships with other young married wives similarly facing the rigors of starting families, making ends meet, and supporting husbands enduring the long days of medical training. After living in Corpus Christi during John's naval service, Joann and John moved to Midland in 1959 and quickly established their roots in the community that became the center of their universe. Joann's focus was raising her three sons, John, Bill, and Rick. In addition to doing the continuous job of shepherding three boys through the daily activities of sports teams and after-school organizations, Joann was a natural leader and was always involved in the Midland community. She cherished her time as a member of the Junior League of Midland, where she served as president, as well as the 16 years she served as a member of the Board of Trustees of Midland College, including a year as board president. Other notable civic roles included service on the boards of both Midland Memorial Hospital and Manor Park. Through all her years in Midland, Joann was also dedicated to her church, St. Luke's United Methodist Church, where she was active as a lay leader and was the first woman to chair the church's Administrative Board. While raising her three sons and thereafter, Joann masterfully performed the roles of mother, grandmother, wife, counselor and friend. She was a positive people person whose quick wit and desire to always be engaged in the game of life produced many deep and enriching relationships. Her four grandchildren affectionately referred to her as "Mimi," and each of them was showered with love, attention, and endless prayers. Above all, she and her beloved John cultivated a 60-year marriage that was punctuated by laughter, adventure, and Joann's positive presence in supporting her pediatrician husband and his patients. Many of Joann's fondest memories were made at the family home on Lake LBJ, where she served as the consummate hostess to countless friends and family. Trips to the family fishing cabin in Colorado for over half a century also produced a lifetime of memories as well, though Joann would playfully register her disdain for the cabin upon her return every summer. Her memory will live on through wonderful stories of gatherings she affectionately orchestrated for family and friends. She is preceded in death by her parents, her husband, and son Bill. She is survived by two sons, John, Jr. (Iris) of Midland and Rick (Kathleen) of San Antonio, and her daughter-in-law Karen of Ft. Worth. She has four grandchildren: Jack (Blair) Foster of Houston, Diana Foster (fiancé Brian Prusiewicz) of Brooklyn, Robert (Sarah) Foster of San Antonio, Bond Foster (fiancée Claire Buechele) of Dallas; and four great-grandchildren, Tess, Molly, Clara, and Bobby Foster. She is also survived by a cousin, Dwane (Shirley) Vardeman of Odessa. A Celebration of Life will occur Saturday, January 14, at 3:00 p.m. at St. Luke's United Methodist Church, 3011 W. Kansas. Live streaming will be available through the church's website: www.stlukesumcmidland.org. In lieu of flowers, memorials may go to St. Luke's United Methodist Church or Midland College Foundation. Arrangements are under the direction of Nalley-Pickle & Welch Funeral Home & Crematory of Midland. Online condolences may be made at www.npwelch.com.