Josephine Tomlinson

Josephine was the youngest of eight children born to George and Cora Finley in Forrest, LA.

The family migrated to the central Valley of California when Jo was 10 years old and they lived near Fresno.

It was there that she met and married Raymond Tomlinson on April 1st, 1956. They were married for 60 years before Ray went home to be with the Lord.

During the course of their marriage they raised four children, three daughters and a son: Debbie, Julie, James and Lori.

She had 8 grandchildren, 7 great grandchildren (with the 8th due in November), and 2 great great grandchildren.

In 1974, Jo was in a car accident outside of Flagstaff, Arizona. She was thrown from the car and her injuries resulted in two fractured vertebrae in her neck. The fear was that she would be paralyzed from the neck down. As swelling subsided from around her spinal cord, feeling returned, and she eventually was able to walk with the assistance of a cane.

Jo fought her way back and was able to have a relatively normal life, but as she got older, due to side effects of the accident, walking became more difficult and she needed assistive devices for any distances.

In the early 1960’s both Jo and Ray accepted Christ as their Savior and were active in various churches. Ray and Jo pastured, or interim pastured several churches before landing in Northern California around 1987. Ray then went into the hospital chaplain ministry and worked under Healthcare Chaplain’s Ministry Association (HCMA). Along with the hospital ministry, they continued in ministering in various other churches in the Northern California area.

More recently, Ray passed away in 2017, and shortly after, Jo was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Through time, Jo’s memories, body, and abilities deteriorated until she finally went home to be with the Lord.

The blessings of the Lord allowed her to pass away peacefully in her sleep.

Although we miss and mourn her, she is now in the presence of her Savior Jesus Christ and reunited with her husband Raymond. For this we Praise God.

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