JoAnn Misselhorn

On July 5, 2025, JoAnn Misselhorn of Peoria, Illinois, beat Alzheimer’s. On that day, every part of her life and every person who made it so full came flooding back into her mind. Not a single memory lost. Every loved one’s important place in her heart remembered. On July 5, 2025, Alzheimer’s lost—and God smiled as He welcomed JoAnn home.

Born on January 25, 1934, in Campbell Hill, Illinois, to Edna (Rieckenberg) and Albert Rathert, JoAnn was one of five children. Campbell Hill is a small town in Southern Illinois, but it always held a big place in her heart. As Alzheimer’s robbed JoAnn of much of her recent memory, Campbell Hill seemed always present in the distant and disconnected spaces in her mind. She felt safe and loved there, and it was there that she felt at home.

It was in Campbell Hill that JoAnn met and married the boy from up the road—Paul “Butch” Misselhorn. JoAnn knew a good guy when she saw one, and she couldn’t have asked for a better partner in life or father for her children. The two married in 1957 and began building their life together in St. Louis, Missouri.

While in St. Louis, they welcomed their first child, Lisa. Not long after, Butch was promoted and transferred to Peoria, Illinois, with the St. Louis-based Hill Brothers Shoe Store. JoAnn and the baby followed, and before long, their son David was born. A couple of years later, their youngest, Mark, completed the family. As the two raised their children and Butch eventually began running his own business, B & L Sales, JoAnn helped with the bookkeeping and also worked for many years as a secretary for Peoria Public Schools, most recently at Washington Gifted.

Together, JoAnn and Butch built a warm and loving home in Peoria, where they created a lifetime of memories with their family and many friends. After retirement, they could be found exercising regularly at The Y and going wherever their grandchildren were—babysitting during the day or cheering them on at performances and sporting events in the evenings and on weekends. They also enjoyed many years of travel with family and friends, exploring destinations across the U.S., including Alaska and Hawaii, as well as numerous places throughout Europe. Life was full and good.

JoAnn is survived by her husband, Paul; her daughter, Lisa (Steve) Pruett; her daughter-in-law, Tracy Misselhorn; her son, Mark (Maggie) Misselhorn; and her grandchildren: Carrie Pruett, Kyle (Allie) Pruett, Ben Misselhorn (Devan Leistikow), Sarah (Mike) Fantl, and Erin Misselhorn. She is also survived by her great-grandchildren, Jaxon Pruett and Brandon Fantl. JoAnn is lovingly remembered by her sisters, Norma Fuhrhop and Janice (Jack) Sharkey, whom she cherished and loved deeply, and by her many nieces and nephews, each of whom held a very special place in Aunt Jo’s heart.

JoAnn was preceded in death by her son, David, in May of 2021. Although Alzheimer’s took many things from her, it granted one unexpected mercy—the inability to comprehend the loss of her son. Her heart would have shattered into a million pieces, never to be whole again. What a beautiful surprise it must have been when JoAnn saw David in heaven. We know he greeted her with his one-of-a-kind smile and the biggest, best hug.

Also preceding her in death were her beloved sister, Ann Goetz—whom she loved, admired, and shared endless laughter with over the years—and her brother, Harley Rathert, who left this world far too soon.

As JoAnn’s memory began to fade, her family held tightly to every moment they shared with her. They remembered her voice filling the house as she sang along to every Simon & Garfunkel song while cleaning, the long car rides going “Down Home” to Campbell Hill to see Grandma and all the cousins, the way she cooked delicious meals every day—each food group represented—and how she never served herself until everyone else had been served. They cherished Sundays and holidays when they would attend Salem Lutheran Church, where she would beautifully sing hymns and find joy in her faith community. And they treasured the simple, everyday moments that made life with JoAnn so full of love.

The Misselhorn family would like to thank the administration and staff at Proctor Place—especially the compassionate caregivers in Shepherd’s Way—for the exceptional care and kindness shown to JoAnn over the years. Every person treated her with such tenderness and dignity. You made her journey more comfortable, safe, and filled with love, smiles, snappy outfits, and better hair days.

Visitation will be held on Saturday, July 12, 2025, at Davison-Fulton Woodland Chapel, 2021 N. University St., Peoria, from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM, followed by her funeral service. A private family interment will follow. JoAnn would have appreciated memorials made to KB Strong in honor of David Misselhorn, to support the fight against Glioblastoma.

Yes, JoAnn Misselhorn beat Alzheimer’s because her heart never changed as the disease tried so desperately to erase the person she was and the beautiful life she lived. She remained her sweet self. A heart like JoAnn’s can beat anything—and it will beat eternally in the presence of God.