Joanne Davis Gentle, 81, of Madison, Alabama, took the hand of Jesus and stepped into Heaven on Sunday, July 14, 2024. Joanne was born at home in Lincoln Mill Village, Huntsville, AL on October 8, 1942.

She was a preemie and was so small that they placed her in a bureau drawer with blankets to keep her warm. Joanne attended grade school at Lincoln School from 1st grade until her 8th grade year when Lincoln Mills were on strike and the family moved to Detroit, Michigan, where she attended her first semester of 8th grade. The family returned to Huntsville when the strike ended to finish out her 8th grade year at Lincoln School. She was always a good student and in her Junior and Senior years at Butler High School she was a member of the National Honor Society. Joanne met the love of her life in 10th grade homeroom when Eddie Gentle sat behind her and got her attention when he "flipped" her ponytail. In February of their Senior year they were engaged. They married three months after graduating in 1961

In Junior High Joanne worked for her dad as a carhop at his food truck. During her high school years she worked at Corman's Bakery on North Parkway. After graduation, Joanne worked for several years as a switchboard operator at John Blue. She became a stay at home mom after her second child was born. The family moved from Meadow Hills in North Huntsville to Madison in 1970 when it was a small town farming community. This city girl loved the country and soon learned how to garden organically through neighbors, the Madison County Co-op and the public library, canning and freezing all summer. She was instrumental in getting her small neighborhood gravel road paved, and the school bus route changed so that her young children could be picked up on their street. It was important to Joanne for her kids to learn to swim so they spent many a summer at the YMCA at the top of Eastview. She was always their biggest fan when they played sports for the YMCA and later at Berachah Christian Academy and Bob Jones High School. As her family expanded, she thoroughly enjoyed each of her grandchildren and attended field trips and activities they were involved in over the years. She was thrilled to meet and hold many of her great grandchildren.

Joanne was led to Jesus in 1963 by Bro. Almon Terry of Meadow Hills Baptist Church. She and her husband were baptized together soon after. She received training with Child Evangelism Fellowship and taught Children's Sunday School at Victory Baptist Church in Madison in the early 1970s. During that time Joanne, her husband and children also memorized scripture through Bible Memory Association. One of her greatest gifts to her family was her prayers. She was truly a Prayer Warrior and the fruit of her labors are still seen today. She was a member of Wall Highway Baptist Church in Madison. Her favorite Bible verses were John 3:16-17. She loved to laugh and be together with her family.

Joanne was preceded in death by her sons, Jim Gentle and Steve Gentle, her twin grandsons William and David Gentle, her grandson Shawn Gentle, by her parents James and Pearl Davis and her oldest brother, James Larie Davis, Jr . Surviving family members include her husband Eddie I Gentle, her daughter and son-in-law Terri and Terry Madden; her son and daughter-in-law Chris and Vickie Gentle; her grandchildren Steven Gentle, Justin Madden, Bailey and Ben Wander, Ashley and Drew Nobles, Lindsay Madden and Christen Mack, Jacob and Niche Eng, Sam Gentle, Leann Rutherford and Zach Robison, Cody Stallions, April and Clay Carswell; her brother Terry Davis of Stevenson, AL, and her niece Lisa Carroll and great nephew Jeremiah Carroll of Huntsville. She is also survived by 14 great- grandchildren.

The family will receive friends and family on Friday, July 19th beginning at 12:00 noon at Berryhill Funeral Home with funeral services following at 2:00. Burial will follow at Huntsville Memory Gardens. The family would like to thank Affinity Hospice in Madison and all the various Caregivers who served us for the gentle and loving way they cared for Joanne, with a special thanks to Cynthia.