Johnelle Foley Snyder passed away October 25, 2018 in Amelia Island, Florida.
She was born July 11, 1949, in Minneapolis, Minn. to her wonderful parents, John and Irma Foley. She grew up in Edina, Minn. and attended Our Lady of Grace Grade School and St. Margaret’s Academy High School. Johnelle received her undergraduate degree from Barat College of the Sacred Heart in Lake Forest, Ill. and obtained her master’s degree in health care administration from the University of Minnesota. In her graduate school class, Johnelle was one of the three first women accepted into the program. Prior to this class, female students had been nuns affiliated with Catholic hospitals.
Johnelle’s professional career included serving as associate administrator of University of Minnesota Hospitals and Clinics and as the executive director of the Minnesota Association of Public Teaching Hospitals. She authored several published articles on subjects involving teaching hospitals and served on a variety of boards, including The Women’s Health Leadership Trust, The Downtown Minneapolis (No. 9) Rotary Club, Norwest Bank – Central Ave, Lafayette Country Club, the Minneapolis Chapter of the MS Society, the Medical Alley Association, and the Alumni Association of the University of Minnesota School of Public Health. Johnelle retired in 1995. In her leisure time Johnelle loved boating on Lake Minnetonka and downhill skiing anywhere in the world, but especially in Vail, Colo., where she “sabbaticaled” for a year following graduate school. Once introduced to golf, she loved her family of friends at Edina Country Club. Johnelle also had a “fun career” doing runway modeling for many of the fine stores and boutiques in the Twin Cities. In 1972, she represented Minnesota in the Miss USA World Pageant in Newport News, Va., placing fourth.
Mrs. Snyder was first preceded in death by her husband, Dennis A. Bowman, Esq., in 1997. In 2014, she lost her second loving husband, Gary L. Snyder. Gary and Johnelle met in a grief support group, both having lost their spouses to cancer. In 2004, Gary and Johnelle moved from Minneapolis to Amelia Island. Together they enjoyed their many friends on the island and became involved in such activities as The Golf Club of Amelia Island, The Rotary Club of Fernandina Beach, St. Michael Catholic Church, The Amelia Island Museum of History, Micah’s Place and Amelia Residents in Support of the Symphony. Their love of the performing arts prompted the Snyders to be actively involved in the funding for the construction of the new venue for the Amelia Community Theatre (ACT). Similarly, in Minneapolis, they were major donors contributing to the building of the world-renowned Guthrie Theatre. In 2012, Gary and Johnelle were instrumental in founding the Amelia Island Chapter of the Chaîne des Rôtisseurs, an international gastronomic society first established in 1248 in Paris. On Jan. 27, 2018, Johnelle was awarded the Chaîne Star of Excellence for distinguished service to the Bailliage of Amelia Island. The Snyders loved each other deeply and adored doing everything together. Their special shared passion was travel and that passion took them literally everywhere in the world. They knew they were blessed to have each other. They loved life, family and friends and truly cherished each day they had together.
Survivors include Johnelle’s sister, Mary Lee Stephenson and her children, Colleen Upton, Kevin (Diane) Healy, and Michael Healy, and their children, Aidan, Molly, Megan, Matthew, Jack and Sean, all of Minneapolis. She is also survived by stepdaughter, Shelly (Tom) Halverson of Maple Grove, Minn., and their sons, Andrew (Emily) of Minneapolis and Aaron of Plymouth, Minn.
There will be a visitation from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, November 9, 2018 at Oxley-Heard Funeral Home. Mass of Christian Burial will take place at 11 a.m. Saturday, November 10, 2018 at St. Michael Catholic Church with lunch to follow. Johnelle Foley Snyder will be entombed, next to Gary, in the mausoleum at Lakewood Cemetery in Minneapolis, Minn. following a service there.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Community Hospice and Palliative Care Center of Northeast Florida, 4266 Sunbeam Road, Jacksonville, FL 32257.
Please share your memories and condolences atwww.oxleyheard.com.
Oxley-Heard Funeral Directors