A Gift Nurtured Early

Growing up in Palo Alto in the 1950s, JoAnne’s beloved Spanish grandmother, Sofia, recognized her talent when she was only a child. “Sofia saw Mom’s musical gift and was her first piano teacher. A woman of strong faith, she laid the foundation for Mom’s lifelong vocation and encouraged it.”

JoAnne began playing for the Church at Our Lady of the Rosary in Palo Alto at 17. She went on to play at many parishes throughout the Bay Area. After getting married, her family settled in the South Bay where she and her husband, Jim, became longtime parishioners of St. Martin Parish in Sunnyvale, where their children—Jeannie, Jim Jr., and Juli—attended St. Martin School.

The Final Season Together

In JoAnne’s last year of life, Juli moved back to California to care for her. “Arthritis had stolen the piano from her, but not her voice,” Juli said. Reunited, mother and daughter once again joined the parish choir where JoAnne had poured out her talents for so many years.

“For me, being with her during those months was an unexpected gift,” Juli reflected. “To sing together again, in the place where our faith as a family had been nourished, felt like God’s way of preparing me for the moment when she would be called home. When she died suddenly, those memories became the well from which I now draw strength.”

Since her mother’s passing, Juli has continued to sing at St. Martin’s. “At first it was in her honor, but it has grown into something more,” she said. “It is now my ministry, my act of faith, and my way of encountering the God who carried her.” She still keeps JoAnne’s 1946 piano lesson book as a cherished reminder of that shared legacy.

Grief and Grace

“Mom had a certainty about God that never wavered,” Juli said. “In her final weeks, she told me she was ready to see Jesus. I objected—but she knew. Her closeness to Him was that real.”

After JoAnne passed away, Juli felt both devastated and strangely comforted. “My grief was raw,” she recalled, “yet I could not shake the sense that she had simply stepped into the presence of the One she had served all her life.”

Juli’s faith helped her navigate her loss. “Not long after, a friend invited me to a Cursillo retreat at Saint Clare Retreat Center in Soquel. At first, I resisted attending. The grief was too heavy. But I carried with me the verse, ‘The Lord is close to the brokenhearted’ (cf. Ps 34:18), and eventually, I went.”

At that retreat, Juli encountered Christ in a way she had never experienced before. “In that serene space, surrounded by beautiful strangers, I met Him. The kindness of those strangers became His hands and feet for me. Their prayers and compassion allowed God’s love to pour into the hollow spaces left by loss.”

Faith Remade

JoAnne’s far-reaching music ministry included teaching young pianists, directing Catholic school events, playing for parish Masses, and collaborating with local artists. That example continues to shape Juli’s own faith. “What struck me most was the way she made no separation between her talents and her faith; they were woven together into a single expression of love.”

Juli also shared one powerful memory: “In 2003, she and I sang as altos in the diocesan choir for the Cathedral Basilica’s bicentennial celebration. Composer Bob Hurd had prepared luminous music for the occasion, and we sang with such intensity that our section could be heard throughout the vast cathedral. We were quite hoarse by the end of that night—but happy to have created that very special memory together.”

Reflecting on her mother’s legacy, Juli offered, “I am deeply proud of my mother. She was a true model of the Parable of the Talents. She never forgot who gave her these incredible, creative gifts. She used her music and art to glorify God—from the beginning to her last breath. I imagine that she graciously returned her talents to her Master in the end.”