Jeanne Ann Searls

Activist, mother, writer, entrepreneur, wife. Jeannie Searls held many titles during her amazing lifetime. She was a woman that truly cared about people; always doing all she could to make sure that everyone had a rich and fulfilling life.

Jeanne Ann Searls was born on April 30, 1936 and passed away June 13, 2016. She was born in Deer Lodge, Montana to Neil and Florence Munden. In the late 1940s, the Munden’s moved their family over to Oregon where Jeanne attended high school in Sandy. After high school, she met her first husband and they were soon married. Together they had six children; five girls and one boy.

As a mother, Jeanne was everything her children could ever ask for. Once she became a grandmother, she continued to do everything she could to put a smile on the kid’s faces. She sewed Halloween costumes and even made Barbie furniture for the grandchildren. Raising six children, Jeanne had to get creative in order to make sure no one went without. She learned how to make fantastic meals on a budget and sewed clothing for her children to wear.

After most of her children grew up and started their own families, Jeanne decided it was time to go back to school. She attended Marylhurst University where she got her degree after writing a thesis documenting her life and the many lessons she learned.

Jeanne was always someone that stood up for what she believed. She did very important work fighting poverty and helping youth. She was heavily involved in the nonprofit; Portland Action Committees Together (PACT); an organization that brought the community together by fostering communication between neighborhood leaders in order to establish better living conditions for their communities. Through this organization she worked to offer utility assistance to impoverished families. She acted as a consultant for big companies such as PGE to help bridge the gap between businesses and the community which they served. She helped open the Southeast Youth Services Center. Through her wisdom, knowledge and connections in the community, she was very instrumental in closing a very dangerous street running between a school and a park. After the successful closure of this street, there was a big block party celebrating the achievement.

Jeanne was very political and got involved in any way she could to ensure that everyone had the fundamental rights they deserved. She was a bleeding heart who attended protests where she even got arrested for standing up for what she believed in. She was an environmentalist and an activist that fought all forms of discrimination. She was strong and determined, the family matriarch; a mother to everyone; from family to friends and other’s she managed to touch. Often, those in her life went to her for advice and she always offered wisdom and a non-judgmental ear. She walked people through some difficult times and although she was there to do anything she could to help, her primary tactic was to empower people to help themselves.

In 1975, Jeanne married Howard; the love of her life. In true Jeanne fashion, she not only embraced Howard but also his three children. After retirement, her and Howard sold all of their belongings, bought a fifth wheel, and went on a sabbatical, exploring the country and everything it had to offer. Jeanne was a very spiritual woman but she also had a passion for exploring and understand different religions and cultures. During this trip she had the opportunity to spend time on a reservation and learn all about Native American cultures and practices.

As more grandchildren were being brought into the world, Jeanne and Howard decided it was time to time to put away the keys and come back to Oregon to spend time with their family. Her daughter built a pad in her yard, where the couple could dock their trailer and visit family.

It was after settling back in that Jeanne and Howard started working on a revolutionary new product that captured their interest. The product was called BioSafe and it was an antibacterial skin protectant that worked wonders. The two of them put their all into this business. They had many clinic trials, many of which were at Stanford University, and time and time again were reassured that this product did wonders. BioSafe had a 99.9% kill rate; succeeding in trials fighting against things life MRSA and even HIV! Unfortunately, Howard’s health started declining and the business became too much to handle. Soon after, Howard passed away and Jeanne was forced to sell the business.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Howard, daughter, Patty Searls and her stepson, Peter Steward. She is survived by her children: Debbie Searls, Cindy Langford, Jay (Trish) Searls, Lori Wornstaff and Lisa (Dave) Sanford; step-children: Jenny (Susie) Landis-Steward and Becky Steward; grandchildren: Ethan, Seth, Tara, Johnathan, Whitney, Matthew, Ron, Ryan, Mikayla, Cody, Tyler, Shayla, Crystal, James, and Tori; 11 great-grandchildren, siblings Ron Munden, Lee Munden, Donna Cossette and Gary Munden; and many nieces and nephews.