Harriet JoAnn McKinley
August 1, 1928 - July 23, 2020
Harriet JoAnn “Jo” McKinley passed away peacefully on July 23, 2020, in Bothell, Washington, just days before her 92nd birthday. Jo was born in Wichita, Kansas, on August 1, 1928. Her mother Ruth was a PhD chemist who taught high school science and Latin; her father Lloyd, also a PhD chemist, was chair of the Chemistry Department at Wichita State University. During her lifetime, Jo was a generous donor to McKinley Hall and its chemistry library, named for her father.
Jo grew up in Wichita with brothers John (Jack) and Don, entering Wichita State University in the fall of 1946 as a pre-med zoology major. She was discouraged by her parents from pursuing a medical degree because they felt that should be a path for one of her brothers, so she made her own bold choice. Not long after graduating in June of 1950, Jo joined the U.S. Army at age 22. She trained to become a physical therapist and served at U.S. military hospitals around the world. Jo served in Vietnam during the Tet Offensive, receiving wounded soldiers in her PT clinic and preparing them for surgery. She attended training to qualify to operate a PT boat and also completed firearms training. While assigned to the Walter Reid Army Medical Center, Jo even had Ike and Mamie Eisenhower as patients. In 1960, she received her master’s degree in physiology from the University of Colorado. During her years of military service, Jo was awarded an Army Commendation Medal, a Meritorious Service Medal, and the Legion of Merit.
Jo loved to travel and enjoyed being stationed abroad at bases in Germany and Japan. Her goal was to see as many countries as possible while in the Army, and by the time she retired, she told her niece Lauren she had visited over 50. Jo retired from the Army as a Lieutenant Colonel in January 1975 and returned to Wichita to live with her mother.
A lover of art and music, Jo travelled to Seattle in August 1976 to see Wagner’s Ring Cycle performed at the Seattle Opera. She fell in love with the city and all it had to offer, and decided to make Seattle her home. A lifelong learner, Jo enrolled at the University of Washington and received both a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in art history, as well as a master’s degree in comparative literature. She also earned a certificate in arts management at the Cornish College of the Arts. Though Jo wanted to pursue a doctorate in art history, she was told that at age 51, she was “too old” to find a job in the field, so she returned to physical therapy, which she continued to practice until 1996. Jo nurtured her loved of art and learning as a docent at both the Seattle Art Museum and the Museum of History and Industry. Friends remember Jo as a mentor who coached and encouraged them to pursue their goals both personally and professionally, and she was genuinely happy for them in their achievements.
Jo continued to travel throughout her life, and her journeys ultimately took her to six continents. Always interested in people and cultures, Jo studied Arabic prior to a 70th birthday cruise around the Arabian Peninsula so she would be able to introduce herself. Friends cherished the opportunity to travel to Spain, France, and Egypt with Jo, enriched by her perspective on life and her knowledge of art history. Jo’s travels culminated with cruises circumnavigating the continents of South America and Africa.
As part of a writing class she took in 2006, Jo noted how she would like to be remembered: “as a caring, skillful physical therapist; as a well-informed and generous museum docent; as a good swimmer; as a friend who could ‘take up where we left off’ decades later; as an impossible card and game player; as an enthusiastic, but untalented painter blessed with many painter friends; as a woman with an Irish sense of humor—whatever that means; as a lifelong student and teacher; as a traveler; as a champion of women’s rights.”
Jo was preceded in death by her brothers John (Jack) and Don and her sister-in-law Ruth Gowdy McKinley. Jo is survived by her extended family: niece Lauren McKinley-Renzetti (who was greatly influenced by her aunt’s penchants for learning, standing on her head for twenty minutes each day, and her daily swimming regime) and family; cousin Chris Flint, his wife Kris and family; cousin Hugh Flint and family; sister-in-law Martha McKinley and family; and long-time friends Frances and Ralph Underwood and Genie Smith. They are grateful to the Canyon Park Adult Living Center in Bothell for their loving care of Jo over the last year.
Jo will be inurned at the Tahoma National Cemetery in honor of her military service; details to be announced on this website. If you would like to honor Jo, please consider a gift to the Seattle Art Museum, ACLU, Seattle Opera, or Wichita State University.
Friends and family may sign the guestbook.
FUNERAL INFORMATION
Jo will be inurned at the Tahoma National Cemetery in honor of her military service on Wednesday July 28, 2021 at 1:00 PM. For additional information, please contact Nancy Gilbert at 206-462-4099.
DONATIONS
If you would like to honor Jo, please consider a gift to the Seattle Art Museum, ACLU, Seattle Opera, or Wichita State University.