It is with great sadness that the family of Joanna Childers announces her passing at University of Tennessee Medical Center, after a long illness, on Saturday, May 24, 2025, at the age of 81. Joanna will be remembered for her beautiful hand-made wedding creations and for her wedding business she had for years in Evarts, KY. She also worked diligently to provide toys for children in need at Christmas in the Park, and she was an advocate for St. Jude's Children's Hospital. She volunteered at Shriner's Burn Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. At Harlan Health and Rehabilitation, where she lived since her stroke in 2014, Joanna loved to use the gift of her voice to testify and to sing "Happy Birthday" to residents and "God Bless America" during patriotic events. She loved attending church at the nursing home and singing. She lived tenaciously and with great faith. Her mantra was always "God will provide."

Joanna will be lovingly remembered by daughters, Melanie Massengill of Clinton, TN, and Sharla (David) Wells of Paducah, KY; her sister, Faye Hensley of Fairfield, OH; her grandchildren, Michelle (Lauren) Stooksbury, Caleb Massengill, Hannah Lee Massengill, Grace Wells, and Luke Wells; her great-grandchildren, Arya Stooksbury and Rylee Mae Massengill; and nieces, nephews and cousins.

Joanna was predeceased in death by her loving husband, Bill Childers, of Evarts, KY, her parents, Reverend Hoyle and Nola Smith, of Evarts, KY; her brothers, David Smith and Roger Smith; her niece, Vonda Lynn Sarver, and her honorary daughter, Cynthia Wynn.

Special thanks to the University of Tennessee Medical Center Neuro ICU and Palliative Care teams for their excellent care of Mom in her stay in her final days, and to Rod, her favorite nurse, at Harlan Health and Rehabilitation who cared for "Sister Jo" like she was his mother. Special thanks to her niece, Kymberly Hensley, for invaluable knowledge on how to care for Mom at the end of life.

Visitation will be held on Wednesday, May 28, 2025, at the Evarts Funeral Home beginning at 12 noon followed by her funeral service at 2 pm. Services will be officiated by the Reverend Bill Moore.

Burial will follow in the Evarts Memorial Gardens with family and friends serving as pallbearers.

Evarts Funeral Home is honored to serve the family of Joanna Smith Childers.