Joanne "Jo" (Wommack) McDaniel

Joanne Wommack (Jo) McDaniel, 86, of Columbus, Georgia, died on Sunday, September 6, 2020 at her home.

A Private Service for family and close friends will be held in the Sanctuary of First Baptist Church 212 12th Street Columbus, GA. 31901. A public Graveside Service will be held 11:30 AM Friday, September 11, 2020 in Parkhill Cemetery with Dr. Jimmy Elder Officiating. The following will serve as active pallbearers; Mr. Charlie McDaniel, Mr. Sam McDaniel, Mr. Trent Nobles, Mayor Skip Henderson, Mr. Brett Johnson, Mr. Andy Murphy, Mr. Mark Hightower,  Mr. Jeff Fair  and Dr. Mark Murphy will serve as an honorary pallbearer. The graveside service will be LIVE-STREAMED on the Face book page of McMullen Funeral Home for those who are unable to attend. In keeping with the efforts to stop the spread of COVID-19, McMullen Funeral Home and Crematory will be following the recommendations set by the Columbus Consolidated Government and Governor Brian Kemp by requiring face coverings and social distancing for those attending the graveside.

Jo McDaniel was the cherished and devoted wife for almost sixty years of the late C.E. (Red) McDaniel, the longest serving member of the City Council of Columbus, GA.  She was staunchly devoted to numerous civic, cultural, and service organizations locally and statewide. Jo’s life centered on her gifts of hospitality and faith and she loved her family, her friends, her pets, her church, her community, and the nature around her.  She found peace and happiness in all she did.  She was an avid traveler, a voracious reader, a beautiful gardener as her yard reflects, and loved her treasured pets over the years.

Jo not only touched innumerable lives, she has molded and changed them.  Not so much by what she said but by the example she set by the life she lived.  She was a quiet, gracious and loving person.  She has taught, mentored, and loved so many for generations and will be sorely missed by all.  

Jo McDaniel was born August 15, 1934 in Macon, Georgia, daughter of William Alton Wommack and Florence Elliott Wommack. She was a graduate of A.L. Miller High School in Macon, Georgia, and a graduate of Mercer University in Macon, graduating with an AB degree in Sociology, and a Minor in both Psychology and Christianity. She was active in the Women’s Student Government at Mercer serving as Vice President during her time in college.  She was a member of Chi Omega Sorority at Mercer where she served as the chapter President and was in the Honorary Leadership Society. She has continued to stay active with Chi Omega as an alumni member, hosting numerous events in her home for her sorority sisters.

Jo and Red McDaniel were married in April,1956 and settled in Columbus soon thereafter where she began her career as an elementary teacher at Edgewood Elementary and then Gentian Elementary School.  After teaching, she stayed home to raise her two sons and was a wonderful homemaker, mother, and volunteer.

In 1981, she was hired as Director of Public Relations and Volunteer Services at HCA Doctors Hospital and later served as Director of Marketing and Communications at Hughston Sports Medicine Hospital at its inception in Columbus.  She loved working with Dr. Jack Hughston and was vital to the groundbreaking, dedication, and marketing for the new sports medicine hospital.  In 1996, she became the Owner and President of Mini Maid of Columbus and ran that business successfully until she sold it in June, 2006.

Mrs. McDaniel was a very active member of First Baptist Church of Columbus and has served in many leadership and volunteer roles at the church as well as being a very devoted member of her Sunday School Class.  She travelled with her church on many trips and enjoyed all the people and places she went to in her adventures around the world.

Over the years, Mrs. McDaniel was very involved in many civic, professional and fraternal organizations to include the La Sertoma Club for ten years, five of them as President, Better Business Bureau Board of Directors, and was the Honorary Chairman for the State of Georgia Small Business Council in 2003.  Her volunteer work is too numerous to list but included serving for over fifteen years on the Board of Directors and as President for the Columbus Alliance for Battered Women, now Hope Harbour, The West Central Georgia Easter Seals Board, American Heart Association, Compassionate Friends, Doctors Hospital Auxiliary and the United Way Board of Directors.  One of her greatest accomplishments was serving as Coordinator of the Public Access to Defibrillation in Columbus and on the State of Georgia Task Force to place defibrillators in all places frequented by the public. She worked tirelessly in Columbus and around the state to provide these life-saving measures to the public.

Jo McDaniel was recognized often for her tireless work and efforts to make Columbus a better place to live.  In addition to many work related awards such as the HCA Excellence in Community Service Award, she was awarded the Ruth Schwob Service to Mankind Award in 2003, the 2001 Soroptomist Woman of Distinction in Public Health, the 1999 Sertoma Service to Mankind Award, and was inducted into the Gracious Ladies of Georgia.

She is survived by her son Charles W. "Chuck" McDaniel (Lisa), 7 grandchildren: Charlie McDaniel (Carson), Sam McDaniel, Trent Nobles, Peyton Nobles, Carrie Johnson (Brett), three great grandchildren; Charles E. McDaniel, III, Averie and Easton Johnson, two nephews: Dr. Mark Murphy (Daphne) and Andrew Murphy (Laura), a niece, Jennifer McCollum (Mitch), five great nephews and a beloved cousin Jack Morris (Luanna). Jo was preceded in death by her son, Scott Andrew McDaniel, who died in 1998.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made in honor of Mrs. McDaniel to your favorite charity or to First Baptist Church 212 12th Street Columbus, Georgia 31901 or Columbus Hospice 7020 Moon Road Columbus, Georgia 31909.

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