Obituary: Jo Anne Boldt

Jo Anne was born Nov. 10, 1936, in Sheridan, Ark. An only child until age 12, she was a self-described Army brat, moving frequently to be near Army bases where her father served during World War II. She attended 14 schools before high school and lived in four southern states before moving to Portland, Ore., ahead of her sixth grade year. She and her family lived briefly in Vanport when they moved to Oregon, moving away just three months before the town was completely washed away by the 1948 Vanport flood.

When her family moved to Portland, they began attending North Baptist Church and she met Don Boldt, the pastor’s son, who was four years older. She graduated from Jefferson High School in 1954 and married Don Dec. 18 of the same year. Don and Jo Anne’s Bible verse, “For this God is our God for ever and ever; He will be our guide even unto death” (Psalm 48:14), was engraved in their wedding rings. She was able to quote it until shortly before she passed Feb. 3, 2022, age 85. Jo Anne attended Western Conservative Baptist Seminary’s undergraduate program from 1954-1957, studying Christian Education.

Don pastored full-time for 36 years, with Jo Anne fully engaged in church ministry through music, children’s ministries, Bible studies, and ministering to pastors’ wives. Together they served from 1958-1994 in four Oregon churches: Tigard First Baptist Church (now called Grace Point Community Church); Tri-City Baptist Church in Myrtle Creek; Calvary Baptist Church in The Dalles; and Wood Village Baptist Church in Wood Village.

Jo Anne was co-editor of Courage, for pastors’ wives, founding editor of The HelpMeet, also for pastors’ wives, and served as vice-president and president of the Pastors’ Wives Fellowship of the Northwest Conservative Baptist Association. After his retirement, Don served nine different churches as an interim pastor, with Jo Anne happily by his side. Their most recent church membership was at North Coast Family Fellowship in Seaside, Ore.

Her gift of singing led her to the Jefferson High School choir, where she was selected for the elite traveling vocal ensemble. In her adult years she was selected as alto soloist for numerous full-scale orchestral productions of Handel’s “Messiah.” She was a member of the Douglas County Messiah Festival Choir, a charter member of The Dalles’ Cascade Singers, and Oregon Opera Ensemble.

Jo Anne lived a full and happy life. She treasured family times. Camping together at Crescent Lake, watching her kids and grandkids grow up, birthdays, holidays, and family reunions filled her heart with joy. She and Don appreciated the opportunity to travel internationally, visiting missionaries during the years that Don served as president of their denomination’s overseas mission association. In later years, they found pleasure in taking annual winter “snowbirding” trips in their fifth-wheel trailer, often joined by family members Dave and Betty Boldt and Terry and Lisa Wells. Her family was blessed to have 19 “bonus years” with her after she lived through a ruptured brain aneurysm in 2003.

She is survived by her brother Terry Wells (wife Lisa); in-laws Dave and Betty Boldt and Ken Olson; children Dan Boldt (wife Kim), Beki Duke (husband Jeff), and Beth Beatty (husband Paul); grandchildren Elise, Alexa, Julianne, Carissa, Jerry, Angela, Brian, Austin, Tyler, Derek; and 15 great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by her parents Armer and Julitta Wells, her brother Jerry Wells (in Vietnam at age 19), her sister-in-law Eunice Olson, and her beloved husband of 66 years, Don Boldt.