Joanne Lorraine Kendall

JOANNE LORRAINE KENDALL
April 3, 1934 ˜ December 3, 2023

Joanne Lorraine Kendall, 89, went to meet her Savior, Jesus on Dec. 3, 2023. Joanne was born April 3, 1934, to Henry and Edna Schulenberg in Hillsboro, OR. She was raised on a dairy farm on Iowa Hill, Cornelius, with her four siblings. She remembered fondly many adventures and summers of berry picking with her brothers, sisters and cousins.

As a young woman, Joanne wanted to see as much of the world as possible, so she became a United Airlines flight attendant with travels spanning the U.S. and overseas. She married Robert G. Kendall in 1961, launching a new chapter in her life. Joanne and Bob moved to Vancouver, WA, where they had two daughters, Leslie and Kristin. During this time, Bob started the local Chevrolet dealership. Through General Motors sponsored trips, Joanne and Bob continued their love of travel adventures to five continents. Joanne had a deep love for God and her children, devoting her life to her family and church ministry.

When her children entered their college years, she prayed for direction of who God would like her to serve next. After much prayer, she felt led to meet the needs of the homeless and impoverished of Clark County. She and Bob, along with other couples from their church, decided to start a homeless shelter for families in Vancouver. They wanted to bring the churches and businesses of Vancouver together to serve people in the community. Open House Ministries was started in 1989 in a downtown Vancouver boarding house. Currently, Open House Ministries is a family shelter of 100-plus residents. In 1994, Joanne and Bob Kendall were recognized as First Citizens of the Year by the Community Foundation for Southwest Washington for their work with the homeless. After her husband’s passing in 1998, Joanne took an interest in Christian Missions around the world. She supported many missionaries and visited some of them in India and Honduras.

Joanne was preceded in death by her husband, Bob; brother, Ray Schulenberg; and sister, Ernestine Francisco. Joanne is survived by her daughters, Leslie (Stacey) O’Kinsella and Kristin (Bud) Hendrickson. She is also survived by grandson, Connor O’Kinsella; granddaughter, Kendall (Stephen) Mahar; great-grandson, James Mahar; brother, Bill (Barbara) Schulenberg; and Virginia Foster.

A celebration of life will be held Feb. 10 at 1 p.m. at Crossroads Community Church. In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests charitable donations be made to Open House Ministries.

Please share a memory @ www.columbian.com/obits