Obituary of JoAnn L. Brown-Sonder

JoAnn L. Brown-Sonder (55) resident of Plummer, ID passed away at Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane, WA on March 15, 2021. She was born to Duane and Henrietta (Finley) Brown on November 16, 1965 in Spokane, WA. JoAnn grew up in Pierce, ID and graduated from Timberline High School with the class of 1984. Following high school, JoAnn attended Portland State University. She then went onto Spokane Community College, where she earned her Associates Degree. She later attended Eastern Washington University where she worked in their Ucut Program while she was working on her Teaching Certificate. JoAnn met Stacey Sonder on a salmon fishing trip in southern Idaho. Later he was asked to come help move furniture for her. He asked her out to dinner and a movie making their first date official on January 29, 1986. The couple fell in love right away and started their family. They married on June 9, 1990 in DeSmet, ID and made their home in Plummer. JoAnn was an enrolled member of the Coeur d’ Alene Tribe and went to work for the Tribe in 1986. She held positions in their finance, billing, and purchasing departments. She held her position for over 30 years. She also enjoyed coaching volleyball and basketball for the Plummer school district. This was a job that she loved and thoroughly enjoyed. JoAnn liked taking pictures, picking huckleberries, and going on road trips whether it was for the day or a weekend. She found great joy in taking her grandchildren on shopping trips, and their adventures would consist of being out all day and returning home late in the evening. She very much loved her family, and the time she spent with them she was always sure to make special. Holidays were always a big deal for JoAnn and she always made them special. She also enjoyed her plants, her garden, windchimes, Pokemon’ Go, and was a huge Prince fan. JoAnn is survived by her husband Stacey at their home in Plummer; her children Andrew Brown-Sonder (Kristina Duncan) of Coeur d’ Alene, ID, Adrian Brown-Sonder, Avery Brown-Sonder, and Archer Brown- Sonder all of Plummer, ID; step-children Reanna (Mike) Hendrickx of Plummer, ID and Justin (Marquette) Hendrickx of Spokane, WA; her father Duane Brown of Plummer, ID; siblings Janet (Tom) Clark of Lewiston, ID, Bill (Tina) Brown of Plummer, ID, Shamara Brown of Lewiston, ID, Gary (Sondra) Brown of Plummer, ID, and Linda Bart of Nespelem, WA; 14 grandchildren; numerous nieces and nephews. She is preceded in death by her mother Henrietta Brown, her father in-law and mother in-law Marvin and Susie Sonder, and her grandparents Earl and Eldna Brown and Pat and Lucy Finley. Rosary will be recited on Thursday, March 18, 2021 at 7:00 pm at the Rose Creek Longhouse in Worley, ID. A Mass of Christian Burial will be Friday, March 19, 2021 at 10:00 am at the Rose Creek Longhouse. JoAnn will be laid to rest following services at the Sacred Heart Mission Cemetery in DeSmet followed by a dinner back at the Longhouse in Worley.