Jo Alta Richardson Harris, 86, of Higginsville, Missouri, formerly of Herndon, Kansas, passed away April 15, 2021 at John Knox Village.

Jo was born in 1934 in Chickasha, Oklahoma, the first child of Cleo Clifton and Maxine Malona (Holcomb) Richardson. Her family left Oklahoma during the Great Depression and moved near Bakersfield, California. While there, she and her mother saw Clark Gable and Carol Lombard. She never forgot the moment where Clark turned, made eye contact, and gave her a wave. The family lived in California for 10 years before returning to Oklahoma. After high school, she began working in a shoe store.

Jo married the love of her life, Jerry Harris, and they were a team from that point onward. She helped him in the warehouse, driving trucks, and working on their ranch. She worked in a sewing factory, built cabinets and trailer houses in a trailer factory, made custom drapes, worked in a grocery store, and cooked in a hospital. She taught art and was an amazing artist herself, winning numerous awards for her oil and watercolor paintings.

Jo loved to fish, camp, sew, and quilt. She rode motorcycles, raced cars, and loved moonlit walks in the falling snow. She loved and protected her family.

She died on her 66th wedding anniversary. Jerry passed away in January of this year and she did not wish to spend even a single anniversary apart from him.

Jo is survived by her son Clifton Mitchell (Tina) Harris of Colby, Kansas; her daughter Brenda Kay Harris (Yancy) Guess of Higginsville; her granddaughter Karmin Guess (Nick) Phillips of Higginsville; her grandson Clark (Alex) Guess of Lexington; her five great-grandchildren Audrey "JoJo" Phillips, Brody Phillips, Nolen Phillips, Arlo Guess, and Hollis Guess; and her sister Ocena Richardson (Jimmy) Kirk of Chickasha, Oklahoma.

She was preceded in death by her parents, her beloved husband Jerry, her grandson Christopher Mitchell Harris, and her brother Clifford Lee Richardson.

A private burial will take place under the direction of Kaiser-Wiegers Funeral Home on Tuesday, April 20, 2021 at the Missouri Veterans Cemetery in Higginsville.