Joanne Winter Chaser –

Beloved Mother, Grandmother and friend

Rapid City - Joanne Thompson Winter Chaser, a deeply loved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and friend, passed away peacefully on January 21, 2026 at the age of 86, surrounded by family.

Born on November 6, 1939, in McCook, Nebraska, Joanne was the second of four children born to ranchers Chester and Doris (Fassler) Thompson. She lived a life rooted in compassion, strength, and devotion to family and community. She was the heart of her home and the steady presence that brought comfort, wisdom, and laughter to those around her. She attended school through Jr. College in McCook.

On September 14, 1958 she married Jack R. Cooley. This union created four children – Susan, Mary, Cindy, and David. She went on to attend the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor and completed her Bachelor's of Science degree in Home Economics at Chadron State College with four kids at home, as a single parent. Later in her career, she received a master's in counseling from South Dakota State University.

December 28,1978 she married Thomas Winter Chaser, her life partner of nearly thirty years until his passing in 2005. She particularly loved his smile and the way he made her laugh.

As a mother, Joanne was endlessly supportive, nurturing, and selfless. As a grandmother, she was a source of unconditional love. She cared deeply about people as her warmth could be felt in her hugs, her words of encouragement, and the way she made others feel seen and valued. She

Her passion for helping people wove into her career as a social worker, home economist, nurse's aide, Domestic Violence Shelter Assistant Director, and high school counselor.

Joanne had a love for creating and designing through canning, sewing, making jewelry, quilts and even a few prom and evening gowns for her girls. She was very involved in 4-H as a young girl and youth. According to her cousin, Jerda, Joanne always earned the top blue ribbon in her calf raising, and was unbeatable in competition. She loved traveling to pow wows and being engaged in the Native American community and culture.  She was particularly a very talented jewelry artist that brought her the opportunity with her husband Tom to be artists at Crazy Horse Monument and The Gift of Mother Earth Craft Show for over 20 years. Being a part of the Crazy Horse Monument community meant a lot to her as it provided her the opportunity to visit with people she knew from across the years living in South Dakota, as well as meeting new people from around the world.

She taught her family the importance of kindness, value of community, seeing the heart and value of all people, education, resilience, generosity, faith, hard work and most importantly unconditional love - lessons that will continue to guide them. She lived the value of being a good neighbor, and friend.

She is survived by her four children, her beloved grandchildren and great grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents, her brothers, and her husband, Tom.

Though our hearts are heavy, we are profoundly grateful for the life she lived and the love she gave so freely. Her legacy lives on in the family she raised, the values she lived, the lives she touched, and the love that will forever bind us together. She leaves behind a legacy of love that time cannot erase.

A service and celebration of life will be held at Osheim Funeral Home at 11:00am on Friday, May 29, 2026 in Rapid City, S.D., and burial will be at 1:30pm at Black Hills National Cemetery in Sturgis.

She will be forever loved, deeply missed, and never forgotten.

A heartfelt thank you to all who cared for our mother, especially at Monument Health's Auxiliary Hospice house who provided outstanding care for Mom during her last few months.