Joanne Rose Ardery

Joanne Rose Ardery, 87, of Indianapolis, passed away peacefully surrounded by family on January 2, 2017. She was born June 26, 1929 in Belleville, Michigan to Matthew Aloyisous and Rose (Bargowski) Pisarek and moved to Indianapolis in 1964.

Joanne is survived by her husband of 39 years, Charles W. Ardery, Jr., of Indianapolis; sons Terry (Joan) Guest of Brownsburg and Mark Guest of Indianapolis; stepchildren Nina Ardery (Anders Sandstrom), Bill Ardery, and James Ardery (Denise) of Indianapolis and Janie (Dan) Drummond of Orlando, Florida; and daughter-in-law Janet Guest of Indianapolis. She was proud of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren: Christine Gordon (Chris) and Mary Grace, Mia, and Molly of Indianapolis; Matthew Guest (Paige) and Luke, Caroline, Anna Claire, and Maeve of Maplewood, New Jersey; Andrew Guest (Kristin) and Mason and Ellie of Cincinnati, Ohio; Anya Guest Lauscher (Terry) and Piper and Elliott of Indianapolis; Heather McClain (Matt) Tyson and Tanner of of Brownsburg; Ashlee Roell (Jeffory) and Kelsey and Trenton of Batesville; Angela Guest, Nicholas Guest, and Michael Guest of Brownsburg; Kara Taylor (Keith) and Wyatt of Zionsville; Olivia Guest of Lebanon; Kai, Soren, and Eivin Sandstrom of Indianapolis; Amanda Drummond of Los Angeles, California and Danielle Drummond of Orlando; Ellen Ardery of Lafayette, Margaret Ardery of Chicago, and Charles C. Ardery of Indianapolis; and Hannah, Samantha, and Laura Ardery of Indianapolis.

She was predeceased by her son Michael Kurt Guest, in 1999.

As the only child of Polish immigrants, Joanne spent her free time browsing the art and culture museums of Detroit with her mother. It was in childhood she gained her appreciation and passion for art and art history. She fulfilled a lifelong dream when she graduated in 1984 from the Herron School of Art with a degree in painting. Although she was much older than many of her classmates at Herron, she loved the diversity of people and cultures represented in the student body and became a beloved classmate and friend to everyone. Upon graduation, she continued her painting and many of her colorful pieces hang in the Chamber of Commerce Building in downtown Indianapolis, among other places.

As a young woman, Joanne worked at Kaiser-Frazer in Michigan. In Indianapolis, she worked at the Murat downtown Indianapolis, and for the Ophthalmology department at IU Medical Center. As she raised her boys in both Michigan and Indiana, she made sure to share her love of the Arts with them, visiting museums, plays, and symphony performances. When grandkids and great grandkids arrived, she continued to introduce and share the Arts.

She enjoyed travel, and accompanied Charlie wherever his career as an administrative law judge would take him, as well as on trips to the American Southwest, Hawaii, Europe, as well as a couple train trips across the United States and into Canada.

In 1992, Joanne was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, and fought hard to overcome the 28% survival odds. With the help of her always-optimistic husband, who never left her side, and her kids and grandkids, Joanne laughed and willed her way into a full recovery, giving us 25 more years with her.

Joanne never met a stranger. Her kind and open smile as well as her ability to talk with anyone gained her many friends, from work, school, and the checkout line at Meijer! Always a beautiful and compassionate lady, Joanne had a heart for those less fortunate and always treated everyone with equal respect and dignity. She saw no lines with regard to race, color, or religion, and firmly believed in equal rights for all people, seeing the best in everyone.

Joanne loved her big extended family and bragged about all her grandchildren and great-grandchildren to anyone who would listen. She loved nothing more than a big family party where she could sit around, laughing, teasing, and sharing stories. Her comments, advice, and suggestions are legendary and have provided belly laughter for years. And now, these wonderful and colorful anecdotes will be an endless source of precious memories forever.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be at noon on Saturday, January 7 at St. Pius X Catholic Church, 7200 Sarto Drive in Indianapolis, with visitation starting at 11:00. Burial will be at Bethel Cemetery in Indianapolis following Mass.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The Humane Society of Indianapolis, The Indianapolis Art Center, or any other organization of the donors choosing.