Joann Aman

JoAnn Payne Aman of Waco went peacefully to be with her Lord and Savior Saturday, May 28, 2022, with her family at her bedside. Services for JoAnn will be Friday, June 3, at 2:00 p.m. at Wilkirson-Hatch-Bailey Funeral Home, with the Rev. James L. Weaver and Rev. John Palmer officiating. Visitation will take place one hour prior to the service. Burial will follow at Thornton Cemetery in Thornton, Texas. JoAnn was born December 7, 1931, in Waco, Texas, to John Wesley and Iris Thompson Payne. She attended Waco schools, graduating from Waco High School in 1949. She attended Baylor University, where she graduated with degrees in history, English, and music in 1954. It was there that she met fellow Bear and future husband, William Burns Aman. They were married in May of 1953 and their love continued for over 60 years. Mrs. Aman was the consummate teacher, and her career began in the mid-1950s and spanned more than forty-five years. Affectionately known as “Mrs. A” by many of her students, she would often look over the north 60th streets when traveling down Bosque Blvd. and say, “I taught most of the children in these streets and their parents!” In 1988, she was named WISD Teacher of the Year. Upon her retirement, she wrote as a last entry in her teacher’s diary, “Well, I am closing the classroom door for the final time and walking away to begin a new chapter in life. But the task and delight of teaching children will remain with me always. Along with Maya Angelou, I can say, ‘I wouldn’t take nothing for my journey now!’” Throughout her life, JoAnn served in many capacities in the Lord’s Church. She was saved at the early age of five. She had a beautiful soprano voice and sang often in her early years. Two of her favorite songs to sing were “His Eye is on the Sparrow” and “The Holy City.” She also played both the organ and the piano and directed Vacation Bible School through which many lives were touched. She and her husband, Bill, taught Sunday School as well as her well known course of biblical prophecy at First Assembly of God and then at First Methodist Church of Waco, where she had attended church with her mother as a child. One of JoAnn’s favorite scripture verses was, “He doeth all things well,” and He certainly has. Mrs. Aman had beautiful handwriting and enjoyed calligraphy. She also enjoyed tracing family history and genealogy. She was an avid reader, and she called her books her “friends.” She was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Waco Euterpean Club, and the Epsilon Chi chapter of the Delta Kappa Gamma society. She is survived by her daughter, Micah Starr Aman Weaver and her husband, Sam. She loved being Nana to her two grandsons, Michael Glenn Goode, Jr., and wife, Amy, and William Buchanan Goode; two great-grandchildren, William Taylor Goode and wife, Chelsea; and two great-great-grandchildren, Kenna and Kase Goode, and Brooke Tyler Turner and husband, Trey. JoAnn and Bill were also blessed to have Dr. Jonathan and Debbie Trower in their lives, and they were godparents to their three children, Jonathan David, Marie Nicole, and Christopher William Trower. Her two lifelong friends were Nancy Millsaps and Lucille Weaver, and she greatly treasured her teacher friends from over the years. JoAnn’s last years were spent at St. Catherine’s/Ascension Living of Waco. Words cannot express our thanks to the wonderful staff there, who lovingly took care of her for over five years. We also extend our thanks to the hospice staff for their care in her final days. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to OMS (One Mission Society) through First United Methodist Church of Waco at 4901 Cobbs Dr., Waco, TX 76710, First Assembly of God of Waco at 6701 Bosque Blvd, Waco, TX 76710, or Brazos Education Foundation of Waco.