Frances Joan Morehead

Frances Joan ‘Jo’ Morehead was born March 12, 1931 to Marshall and Mable Griggs. She was born in Union County, Kentucky at home on the family farm. She attended a one-room school house while living on the farm. Since the one-room school house had only 1 teacher, they taught every other grade each year, which resulted in Jo skipping a grade! Her family’s home, her relatives’ homes, and all of their land would be purchased by the government in 1942 and transformed into Camp Breckinridge. It was a great sadness to all in the family to have to leave their homes and the support of one another. Jo and her family moved from the farm to Evansville, where she completed primary school at St. Benedict’s and then graduated from Memorial High School. A few months after graduation, Jo married Clyde ‘Buddy’ Morehead on Nov 5, 1949. They would have their first child 9 months and 7 days after they were married, and then child number two came along 11 months after that. She always said about those early years, “We were kids raising kids, but we had a lot of help!” They would go on to have 3 more children, for a total of 5 children in 9 years. They were married 69 years. She passed away on the day of their wedding anniversary, November 5. It would have marked their 74th year together. Jo worked for Jesse Stock Insurance for a short time, and after the kids were growing and grown, she volunteered as a ‘Pink Lady’ at Deaconess Hospital. She and Buddy moved many times over the course of their marriage, and many of the homes they lived in they designed and either built themselves or oversaw the construction. Family strength, love, and unity were always very important to Jo. She adored each and every family member and prayed for them daily. Jo is survived by Kathy Knapp of Evansville, Rick (Darleen) Morehead of Goodlettsville, TN, Lynda (David) Rands of Glen Carbon, IL, Mary Beth Burklow of Rushville, IN, and son-in-law Mark (Melissa) Ambre, Noblesville, IN. She has 16 grandchildren and 17 great grandchildren with number 18 due in February. She is also survived by a sister, Lynda (Earl) Peters of Henderson, KY, a brother Dan (Patti) Griggs of Canton, GA, sisters-in-law Mary Ann Griggs of Indianapolis, Charlye Jo Griggs of Henderson, Marianne Wagner of Evansville, and Carolyn (Jerry) Scales of Newburgh, along with many nieces, nephews, and cousins. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Buddy, her daughter Jayne Ambre, her sister Eleanor Fake, and her brothers Austin Griggs, Jack Griggs, Jim Griggs, and Bob Griggs. Jo was a long-time member of Holy Redeemer Church, where she was a Eucharistic Minister and a member of the choir and Parish Council. A Mass of Christian burial will be held at Holy Redeemer, 918 W. Mill Rd., Evansville, IN on Saturday, November 11, 2023 at 11:00 am, Rev. Theodore Tempel presiding. Visitation will be prior to the Mass at Holy Redeemer from 9:30 am until service time on Saturday. Interment will follow at St. Joseph Cemetery in Evansville. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to The McClure Cemetery, c/o Edward Jones, 2202 U.S. Highway 41, Suite C, Henderson KY 42420. Condolences may be made online at www.pierrefuneralhome.com.

Frances Joan Morehead

March 12, 1931 - November 5, 2023