February 12, 1948 - April 20, 2021

Joanne Heilinger joined her Heavenly Father on April 20, 2021. She was 73 years of age. Joanne was born on February 12, 1948 to Elwin and Ruby Heilinger in Oregon City, Oregon. The family moved to Cottage Grove and then to Sheridan where they owned the Merc Department Store.

Joanne graduated from Sheridan High School in 1966 and continued her education at Southern Oregon College, graduating with a Bachelors of Science in Sociology in 1970 and an Masters of Science in General Studies - Social Sciences in 1971. After college, Joanne moved to Salem, Oregon and worked for The Boys and Girls Club as bookkeeper.

After retiring from The Boys and Girls Club, Joanne became a fitness instructor leading Yoga, Spinning and Silver Sneakers fitness classes at the Kroc Center. Joanne was an avid runner and then bicyclist. As a member of the Salem Bicycle Club, Joanne rode many, many miles with the club winning the Club's high mileage award "The Battered Saddle" thirteen years. In addition, she chaired the Club's Rides Committee, coordinated the Club's Event rides - "The Monster Cookie", "The Watermelon" and "The Peach of a Ride" among many other volunteer activities. Joanne met her future husband, John Henry Maurice, during a bicycle ride, and they were married during the entertainment segment of a meeting of the Salem Bicycle Club. Joanne and John spent many of their vacations cycle touring in the U.S. and Canada. When not cycling, Joanne enjoyed bowling for over forty years.

Joanne attended Salem Alliance Church for forty plus years, where she led a Women's Bible Study group and sewed more than 2500 face masks for the church ministry in the last year. One of the many highlights of Joanne's life was a trip to India in 1984 to visit the orphanage where her adopted children Kavin and Malika lived before coming to America.

She was preceded in death by her parents Elwin and Ruby and her daughter Malika. She is survived by her husband of 27 years, John Henry Maurice, her son Kavin Blanton (Emily), her brother Gerald Heilinger (Sally), grandchildren Kaleb and Ruby Blanton, three beloved nieces and a nephew and her kitties Windsor and Dusty. Joanne was a strong, loving and positive person with a sweet smile that brought joy to all. While being modest, Joanne served as an inspiration to many. She will be missed.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Susan G. Komen for the Cure Breast Cancer Foundation - https://www.komen.org/.