Joanne Kernell Blakey

In Loving Memory of Joanne Kernell Blakey  Nov. 2, 1928  -- May 4, 2025

Joanne Kernell Blakey, our loving mother, passed away peacefully on May 4, 2025 in Arroyo Grande, at the age of 96.  Joanne was born in Escondido, CA on Nov. 2, 1928 to happy parents Alexander and Ruth Kernell.  Her early years were spent in Oceanside before the family moved to Montebello, CA in 1936 where Joanne attended school, and graduated from Montebello High School.  Joanne, an only child, was always an excellent student who took her studies seriously and always earned good grades.  She played piano, was involved in Job’s Daughters (serving as Honored Queen in 1946 for her local group), and was a song girl on the pep squad during her senior year at Montebello HS.  Joanne was the first in her family to attend college and in 1947 she began classes at Woodbury College in Los Angeles.  At Woodbury Joanne made many new friends and joined a sorority, earning her B.A. in Advertising in 1949 through Woodbury’s post-war year-round degree program.  It was also there that she met the love of her life, Fisher Blakey, whom she would marry on Dec. 10, 1949.

Joanne and Fisher had two children, Jennifer and Chris.  The family spent many happy years in La Crescenta with the kids attending all the local schools.  Joanne was active at La Crescenta First Baptist Church and made many fast friends there with whom she and Fisher would spend many decades making memories together.  Joanne loved to read, travel, and was an excellent cook and baker.  She was especially appreciated for her grand assortment of tasty cookies during the Christmas holidays.  Somewhere in the mid-1970s, Joanne took up golf.  She and Fisher spent many a happy Saturday afternoon on the “links” together (of course, the happiness level was somewhat dependent on how well she was striking the ball on that particular day . . .).

In 1986 Joanne and Fisher moved to Arroyo Grande, following Jennifer and Chris, both of whom attended Cal Poly (SLO).  She thoroughly enjoyed her new life on the beautiful Central Coast, making many new friends, becoming active at Grace Bible Church, golfing at the SLO Country Club, doing Jazzercize, and joining PEO Chapter SO.  Being an only child, Joanne loved her PEO friends as her sisters, who were always so accepting and loving.  Joanne remained active in PEO, at church, on the links, and in Jazzercize until her late 80s.  Fisher predeceased her in 1998, yet, there was more on the horizon for Joanne.  An old high school sweetheart, Bill Sexton, made contact with Joanne, and in time, the two became close again.  Joanne and Bill enjoyed 17 of their twilight years in Arroyo Grande as loving partners and companions. 

Joanne is survived by daughter and son-in-law, Jennifer and Alan Bond; son and daughter-in-law, Chris and Mary Blakey; grandchildren, Jason d’Autremont (Tessa), Jeremy d’Autremont (Nikki), Josh d’Autremont (Ashley), Michaela Blakey Weaver (Chase), and Russell Blakey (Tori); great grandchildren, Talan, Noah, Kaden, Isaiah, Nora, Rhys, Owen, Mila, and Tommy.

Joanne was laid to rest alongside her late husband, Fisher, a reunion of love and a lifetime of shared memories.  Her care and concern for everyone around her, her ever so slightly sardonic sense of humor, her on-the-go spirit, and the delicious dishes that warmed her kitchen and guests, will all be deeply missed.  Her legacy lives on in the lives she touched and the stories that will continue to be told in her honor.

A celebration of her life will be held with close family and friends on August 2 at Wildwood Ranch, in Arroyo Grande, where she and Fisher lived for so many years.

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