JoAnn (Dilworth) Wetmore
Born in Seattle on August 7, 1933 to Richard and Gertrude Dilworth, JoAnn spent her early years in Seattle, Spartanburg, South Carolina, Puerto Rico and Sacramento before settling in Seattle, graduating from Franklin High School in 1951. She graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in dietetics, marrying Richard “Dick” Wetmore on June 18, 1955. Dick and JoAnn started their lives together in San Diego, settling in Seattle upon Dick’s release from active duty in the Navy in June, 1957.
Daughter Debbie was born January 20, 1957, followed by the birth of daughter Cindy on April 30, 1958. The young family lived in their Beacon Hill home from 1958 until 1967, when they moved to Bellevue to allow room for horses, not to mention dogs, cats, chickens, rabbits, and goats. This was to be Dick and JoAnn’s home for the next 46 years, serving as a welcoming hub for scout meetings, family gatherings, bike club and Mountaineer potlucks, and friends and guests from around the world.
JoAnn began her long involvement with Girl Scouts on Beacon Hill as a Brownie Scout leader. Following the girls as they grew, she also served as a Cadet and Junior Scout leader as well as a leader trainer. JoAnn continued her Scout leadership by managing the Totem Council Lichtenfeld chalet near Stevens Pass and running a horse camp at Camp River Ranch. As troop leaders, JoAnn and Dick planned and led epic backpacking trips to the Enchantments and Image Lake in the Cascade Mountains, bicycle trips to Oregon and British Columbia, and a cross-state bicycle ride to the Spokane World’s Fair in 1974.
JoAnn’s travels continued when she and Dick joined a Mountaineers bicycle tour of England in 1978. This foreign travel inspired them to seize the opportunity to live in Japan for 14 months for Dick’s work with Boeing in 1979-80. She instantly immersed herself in all things Japanese, from cooking and tea to pottery and ikebana (flower arranging). Upon returning from Japan, Dick’s work took them to the Netherlands, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia, and return trips to Japan and England.
In the states, JoAnn and Dick celebrated their 50th birthdays by riding their tandem bicycle from Bellevue to Boston in 1983, an 8-week, 3500 mile trek, raising funds for the Leukemia Society along the way. After Dick’s retirement in 1991, they retraced Lewis and Clark’s route from St. Louis to Astoria, Oregon on their tandem. This was followed by bike rides from Munich to Budapest and the classic “End to End” ride from the southern coast of England to the northern coast of Scotland.
As JoAnn’s health declined, they took to their RV as a mode of travel, making trips to Alaska, Washington DC, Williamsburg, Mt. Rushmore, multiple national parks, and annual visits to Peoria, Arizona for Mariners’ spring training games. JoAnn’s Peoria highlight was catching a foul ball in 2009, a ball still adorning the mantelpiece at home. 
Among her many accomplishments, JoAnn was most proud of her leadership in scouting, raising her two wonderful daughters, and providing delicious, healthy and sometimes not-so-healthy food for her family and wide circle of friends. Possessed with a terrific smile and ready laugh, JoAnn was highly creative, sharing her crafting and artistic talents generously and lovingly. She was also the epitome of a loving and doting grandmother to her three grandchildren, creating indelible memories for us all.
JoAnn led a full, active, and generous life, enriching the lives of all who knew her until succumbing to complications from Alzheimer’s disease on November 17, 2013. She is survived by her husband Richard, daughters Debbie Wetmore and Cindy McCabe, sons-in-law Scott Pringle and Charles McCabe, and grandchildren Hannah, Walker and April McCabe.
In lieu of flowers, remembrances may be made to the Western and Central Washington State Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association http://www.alz.org/alzwa. An open house celebration of JoAnn’s life will be held from 12:00 to 5:00 on December 8, 2013 at the Wetmore home in Bellevue, WA.