Jo Lynn Mahaffey

JoLynn (Sorensen) Mahaffey, 73, of Chubbuck, Idaho, passed away on February 17, 2023, after a short illness.

She was born April 21, 1949, in Pocatello, Idaho, to Reece and Aleen (Wellard) Sorensen. She was the middle of five children.

JoLynn spent her childhood in Pocatello where she attended Roosevelt Elementary, then Blackfoot Junior High, Hawthorne Junior High and graduated from Highland High School in 1967. After high school she attended Grimms Business School.

She met Bill Mahaffey, the love of her life, in 1967 and they married in June 1968. They had three daughters - Teresa, KayLee and Holly. They also helped raise 14 foster children. They had been married for 45 years when Bill passed away from cancer in 2014.

In 1976, Bill and JoLynn moved their family to Condon, Montana where they owned and operated the Swan Valley Centre for 17 years.

Upon retirement they moved to Sun City, Arizona for 4 years and then back to Chubbuck, Idaho. During this retirement is when JoLynn found her passion of crocheting and making homemade lemon meringue pies.

JoLynn had 7 grandchildren and 11 great grandchildren. JoLynn was a loving and caring wife, mother and grandma, great grandma and friend and will be missed by everyone who knew her.

She was preceeded in death by her husband, William (Bill) Mahaffey; her parents Reece and Aleen Sorensen; sister Sidney Knudsen; and grandson William “Bryan”.

JoLynn is survived by her daughters: Teresa Horton (Jim) of Palmer, Alaska; KayLee Coulson (Matthew) of Kalispell, Montana; and Holly Mahaffey (Ryan Byers) of Johnstown, Colorado; six grandchildren: Shelby (Mike), Samantha, Briana (Joel), Ashlyn (Jason), Taylor, and Dylan; eleven great grandchildren: Maggie, Bryan, Bexley, Madeline, Mila, Owen, Olivia, Esmeralda, Norah, Paige and Luca; brothers: Les Sorensen (Mae) and Rod Sorensen (Mary); and sister Margo Stuart.

Funeral services will be held on Saturday, February 25, 2023, at 10:00 a.m. at Wilks Funeral Home in Chubbuck. The family will greet friends and others at a brief visitation to be held one half hour prior to the funeral services. Inurnment will follow at Mountain View Cemetery.

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