Joan “JoAnn” Schmitt, beloved mother and grandmother, passed away at her Hillsboro home on Nov. 24, 2025, to be with the Lord and Savior, her husband, parents, brothers and sister. She was 90 years young.
Born Aug. 31, 1935, to parents Isabelle and Urgel Bouchard, Joan was the youngest of four children. She grew up on her family’s ranch across the Yellowstone River east of Sidney, Montana — where she rode horses, worked in the beet fields and spent time with her family.
Joan attended Newlon School in Sidney from first through seventh grade, Sidney Junior High School in eighth grade and Sidney High School from ninth through 12th grade, graduating in 1953.
While in high school, she met the love of her life, Jim Schmitt. The two enjoyed ice skating, dancing, playing cards and talking with one another. After high school, Joan worked as an operator for Bell Telephone Co. while Jim served in the U.S. Army. They married in March 1955 and were together for 67 years until Jim passed away.
Raising four children, Joan kept busy as a stay-at-home mom. She was a devout Catholic and served as a member of the Altar Society in Montana before their family moved to Oregon in 1969, where she lived for the rest of her life with her family.
Joan had a knack for crafts: sewing, macramée and crocheting beautiful doll dresses, afghans and doilies. Among other pastimes, she tended to her garden, cooked meals for her family and baked delicious treats like orange rolls and rahmkuchen.
In her later years, she loved spending time with her grandchildren, watching her TV programs, and playing pinochle and Aggravation. Her love and warmth will be dearly missed.
Joan is survived by her two daughters, Kathy (George) Hackleman and Theresa (Bill) LaMora, both of Oregon; two sons, Dan (Cheryl) Schmitt of Texas and Richard (Annette) Schmitt of Oregon; 18 grandchildren, 29 great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband, parents, two brothers and sister.