Martha "Jo" Moores

Martha “Jo” Moores, The world lost one of the kindest women and we lost the greatest mom on May 13, 2024. Martha “Jo” Moores, born on December 26, 1929, died peacefully in the wee hours of the day after Mother’s Day. Jo was born Martha Jo Burton on a small farm in Mitchell, Indiana. She is predeceased by her brother, Ken Burton (who died during a training flight during World War II) and Bruce Burton; her sister, Mary Burton Benter; and stepbrother, William T. Cordes. She had fond memories of playing on the farm, riding pigs, caring for baby Kenny and sitting in the barn while her mother Clara Burton Cordes milked the cows. She said she thought “Kenny” was her baby and his death hit her very hard. Jo’s father died while she was quite young and the kids were farmed out to various relatives so that her mother could work as a “Rosy the Riveter” during WWII. Jo’s mother married architect William Cordes who she called Pop and with whom she enjoyed a warm relationship. Pop took er to baseball games and boxing matches, and loved her unconditionally. Jo’s mother “Mimi” taught her to love gardening and flowers. Both predeceased her. Jo was married to Jim Myers. They adopted two children Blair and Paula who were the same age. The marriage ended and to our great fortune Jo’s minister introduced her to Merrill Moores, a widower and our father, via his minister. Merrill had four children, Marilyn, Candace, and twins Courtland “Corky” and Merrill “Scooter”. Blair and Paula were the same age as Candace and so this amazing woman had six children all within three years of each other. Each parent adopted the other’s children thus forming the family that Merrill referred to as the “tribe”. Jo and Merrill traveled the world, collecting antiques and oddities – Mexico, England, Ireland, Scotland and Germany, finally opening a gift shop in Noblesville called La Angel (motto “where unique is commonplace”) which Jo operated all while parenting her six kids. After the kids were out of the house, they spent winters in Mexico and later in Tucson. They collected creches from all over the world and later donated them to Meridian Street United Methodist Church where they can still be seen on display during Advent. In 1986, Jo developed what the doctors termed “idiopathic” pulmonary hypertension for which they could find no cure. It was later determined that her aorta was full of blood clots and as one of the first of its kind, she underwent an eight-hour surgery at the University of Chicago. Amazingly, she survived and went on to thrive on blood thinners for the rest of her life. Merrill died in 2011 and Jo remained in their home. Jo met and bonded with the Andrade family and became the Mimi for Manuel, Elda, Cesar, Sebastian, Natalia and Nicolas. She cherished her new grandchildren and her new “kids” Manuel and Elda. Jo was a fabulous cook, an unbelievably kind person, a talented seamstress, a loving and supporting mother, a true depression baby – she declined to pay for a better blood thinner because she thought it was too expensive. She found beauty in everything – people, art, and nature. Jo is survived by 14 grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; and lovingly remembered by her children, Marilyn Moores, Candace Marendt, Courtland (Jill) Moores, Merrill (Cathy) Moores, and Blair (Myrna) Moores. Her daughter, Paula Moores Harter; son-in-law, Michael Harter; and their child Kyle Harter all predeceased her as well as her grandson, Gregory Morris. There was no greater mom in the world. She was kind, bright, interested and interesting, and loving. She loved rocks and plants and had a green thumb to be envied. We will miss her beyond words. Visitation will be held Saturday, June 1, 2024 from 3:00 p.m. until 5:00 p.m. at Shirley Brothers Fishers-Castleton Chapel, 9900 Allisonville Road, Fishers, IN 46038. In lieu of flowers, please donate to Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer at www.komen.org.

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Martha "Jo" Moores

December 26, 1929 - May 13, 2024