Obituary

Joann Marie Bullington
Feb 14, 1945 – Oct 4, 2023

Joann Marie Bullington (Gignac) passed away peacefully at home in Mission Viejo, CA on October 4th after a long illness. Joann was born on February 14th, 1945 in Michigan and married Steven Bullington on June 13th, 1965. Joann and Steve moved to California in 1969, with their 2 children, Sam and Karen, and lived in the Bay Area for 8 years. In San Ramon, Joann was PTA President, playground supervisor, school bus driver and worked as a clerk in both a grocery store and fabric store. Joann was a master DIY home decorator, fashioning rugs for each room out of carpet samples. In 1977, Joann and Steve and family moved to Southern California, where Joann began working part time for United Parcel Service as a shipping clerk in Westlake Village. Over the next decade, Joann became a full time employee filling various positions, including driver, as she moved up the leadership ranks to management. Joann primary served in the field of telecommunications, eventually relocating with Steve to Mission Viejo when permanently assigned to the Regional Office in Laguna Hills.

Joann was passionate about UPS and a fiercely loyal employee. She was known for being a stickler for details as well as for her incredible generosity. She regarded her fellow employees as family and went to great lengths to track down the perfect gifts for those in her circle. Shopping was an obsession of hers, as was traveling. In the 90s, Joann and Steve traveled to many exotic global destinations: Paris, Brussels, Vienna, Budapest, Spain, Thailand, Hong Kong, and China. But her favorites were Turkey – where she and friends made 4 trips, enjoying shopping and historic sites – and Honolulu, where she and Steve both travelled for work and cultivated family.

Joann retired from UPS in 2011 and focused her attention on gardening, her dog friends, her love of Mexican food, police drama reruns, and expanding her extensive collection of Christmas decorations. As friends and family have frequently noted over the years, she “did everything big.”

Joann was predeceased by beloved husband Steve. She is survived by 2 siblings (Judy Horigan and Jim Gignac), her 2 children (Karen Johnson and Sam Bullington) and their partners (Richard Johnson and Erin Wolfe), and 1 grandchild (Riley Johnson, aged 13). Joann made a massive impact on the world around her and she will be dearly missed by many.

A Celebration of Life honoring Joann will be held on Sunday, November 19th, 2023 at 2pm at Norman P Murray Community and Senior Center in Mission Viejo. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial gifts be donated in Joann’s name to local animal rescue organizations: Compassionate Animal Rescue for Medical Aid (CARMA) carmaOC.org, Pet Project Foundation petprojectfoundation.org, and My New Hope Foundation mynewhopefoundation.org.