Josephine Adele Montgomery

Josephine Skelton Montgomery, 91, of Fairland, OK, passed away at the Windridge Nursing Home in Miami on February 24. She was the younger daughter of Joseph and Minnie May (Tree) Skelton and was born in Tillsonburg, Ontario, Canada on January 26, 1925. She was the last of her six siblings: Joseph, Fred, Mary, Floyd and Bob. She is survived by her husband, Vern, and their four children: Larry, Jamie, Pam, and Bob and their families, which includes 13 grandchildren, 15 great grandchildren and 2 great- great grandchildren, plus a daughter of the heart, Karen, and her daughter. Josephine attended Graceland College in Lamoni, Iowa in the late ‘40’s and while there, co-authored North of Heaven with friend, Bilione Whiting. She met her future husband while they were both attending KU and fell in love by correspondence between Canada and Oklahoma. Jo married Vern Montgomery in Independence, MO on Sept. 2, 1950 and together they lived in Fairland, Oklahoma; Lawrence, Kansas; Terre Haute, Indiana, Indianapolis, Indiana; Apache Junction, Arizona and Fairland, OK. She wrote The Quiet Miracle while the children were little and To Serve with Love in the early ‘70’s. During the ‘80’s, she and daughter, Jamie, spun a story together during long visits and phone calls and a children’s book, A Time Between was published years later. Jo completed her teaching degree in Lawrence, Kansas and when they moved to Terre Haute, Indiana in 1963, taught 9th grade English to an entire generation in nearby Brazil until her retirement in 1991. Jo loved to play board and card games, where her sense of humor made losing to her enjoyable. She was equally as funny when she lost. Her strong faith in a loving Heavenly Father guided her days. For many years she read the Bible daily and journaled her thoughts and prayers. She filled notebook after notebook. She was a lifelong member of Community of Christ, serving as a writer, teacher, and as an Elder in her later years. Her wisdom and gentleness of spirit were appreciated by all who knew her. She will be missed. A small family service was held on Saturday, February 27th at the Brown-Winter Funeral Home and Cremation Service in Fairland, with a larger celebration of her life at the Community of Christ in Miami on Saturday, May 28th, over the Memorial weekend. Internment was at the Fairland Cemetery.

Josephine Adele Montgomery

January 26, 1925 - February 24, 2016