Johanna Crosby
Johanna Crosby, 78, went to be with the Lord on March 1, 2017. Until the onset of severe diabetes required her to live in assisted care facilities, Johanna lived a life filled with many interests, accomplishments, and lasting friendships.
Born to Raymond and Ann Sniher of Tutnell, Saskatchewan, Canada on April 10, 1939 Johanna spent her childhood on a farm. She attended St. Boniface School of Nursing in Manitoba, graduating in 1961 as a registered nurse. Johanna had many interests and lifelong friendships with her fellow nursing students. After nursing school she worked on a Pediatric Unit as a staff nurse at Children’s Hospital in Winnepeg. She taught pediatrics, her first love in nursing. She then moved to Vancouver in 1962 and worked as a stewardess for Canadian Pacific Airlines. During this period she traveled to Europe and Mexico.
Johanna came to San Francisco with her friend Myra Grisso in 1967. She worked at Children’s Hospital, the Irwin Memorial Blood Bank, and as an industrial nurse for Union Oil Company. She belonged to the “Fanny Hill Ski Club” and enjoyed many social events and trips to the Lake Tahoe region to ski. She was a member of the “Little Club,” made up of single women for the purpose of socializing and raising money for philanthropy. It was at a club event in the summer of 1974 that she met Bill Crosby, a young attorney. A year later following the return to Bill’s home in Orange County, they were married in a Catholic church ceremony in Bill’s original home town, South Pasadena.
Johanna and Bill lived in Irvine where Bill resumed his civil trial practice following an unsuccessful campaign for the State Assembly. Mary Beth was born in 1977 and Joseph in 1978. The Crosbys became involved in community and political activities, including the South Coast Republican Forum, the Orange County Lincoln Club, and the Exchange Club of Irvine. Johanna was a great mother, encouraging Mary Beth’s thespian career and was actively involved in parent-teacher activities. Bill and Johanna enjoyed a trip to Oxford and London, England with the ABA in 1984, and to Beijing, China in 1986. The family also enjoyed motor trips to Yosemite and two trips to Hawaii. One year, Johanna chaired the “Celebration in White” fundraiser for the new Irvine Hospital.
Bill and Johanna separated in 1987 and divorced in 1989, but remained good friends. In about 1997, after Joseph’s graduation from Irvine High School, Johanna moved to Sonoma. She worked as a telephone advice nurse in Vallejo and as a staff nurse at St. Helena Hospital in the psychiatric unit. She also held a position as a nurse case manager. She enjoyed being close to her lifelong friends, Myra Grisso, Joan Cody, and Tena Trabookis. She also enjoyed singing in the choir, reading, and her cat, Tigger.
Johanna’s health worsened due to the ravages of type II diabetes, requiring her to take up residence in an assisted care facility in 2013. In 2014, Johanna returned to Orange County where she resided at Crown Cove in Corona del Mar for several months prior to moving to the Laguna Hills Health and Wellness Center. She very much enjoyed regular visits by Mary Beth, Joe, Bill, and her good friends Randall DiSalvo and Sharon Glenn. Johanna was particularly delighted to see her first and only grandchild, Grace, at lunches with Bill, Mary Beth, and her son-in-law, Marc. She is also survived by her brothers, Bill, of Sheho Saskatchewan, and Morris, of Edmonton, Canada. Funeral services were held at St. John Neuman’s Church in Irvine and at a Catholic church in Sonoma in March. Donations may be made in Johanna’s name to the American Diabetes Association.