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 A Tribute to Joan Ellen Marinaro
04/03/1953 - 08/17/2003
When you think of Joan, you should remember bright colors, especially purple; jewelry everywhere, fun outfits, her laughter, her love for the children she taught, gardening, her unconditional love for animals and especially her beautiful smile.
After living out west for many years, Joan finally returned back home to the east coast. She had so many wonderful experiences while away but was so happy to be home. She would always say how it was hard being so far away from family and missing so many events. She had so much fun reconnecting with everyone. We have always been so fortunate to have such a wonderful family network.
Earlier this year, we had a surprise 50th birthday party for her. She was still talking about it. She said over and over again how she felt so honored to have had so many family and friends attend her party. We are so grateful we had that day of fun and memories. Who can forget that look of surprise when she entered the room? How that look continued as she greeted and saw each person that was there.... her family, her childhood friends and her colleagues.
Joan could be stubborn and opinionated! In fact, those are the very traits that made her the special person that she was! Joan was also stuck in the middle...being the middle child is a tough job. The oldest gets a lot of attention because they were first; therefore Mike set the mode, and of course the youngest is special because they are the baby of the family! So I'm sure that Barb and Mike helped to toughen up Joan and mold her into the person that she was by always picking on her. There are so many happy memories growing up as sisters and brother. Remembering Peace St. in Danbury and Muller St in New Fairfield. Sisters and brothers had squabbles, what kids don't, but they had so much fun!
Returning home, Joan was able to bond with her nephew Richard, her nieces Yensina and Heather and most recently her great nephew Dustin, and great nieces Faith and Grace. She could connect with the teenagers and had fun meeting their friends, hearing about their adventures. She loved being Aunt Joan and AJ and spoiling them with presents and sound advice. She was the photographer in the family and took many pictures of the children. She was able to experience Heather; Rich & Yensina grow-up and begin maturing into young adults. She was so very proud of them and their accomplishments. She bragged often about her nephews and nieces. She certainly was a sounding board for Mike and Barb as their children grew up. She was always there when you needed her.
She enjoyed learning and reading and excelled in school. She made her Mom and Dad so proud. She loved school and would have become a professional student if she could. What better career for Joan then to become a teacher. She was so proud of teaching. And what a wonderful teacher she was. I'm sure many of you received her daily or weekly e-mails where we could experience her life. They certainly made you laugh, didn't they?
Joan was a graduate of Western Connecticut State College and earned her masters degree while she lived in Colorado. She was a devoted teacher of Special Education at Maplewood Elementary School, in Bridgeport, CT. She also spent several years teaching on the Navajo Indian Reservation at Chinle High School in Arizona from which she had many wonderful experiences, stories and memories. Her dedication to the children she taught was incredible and tireless. Joan's commitment to her profession, to the children she taught and the endless hours she dedicated showed her loyalty to what she felt was her "calling" in life.
She would be so proud when a student would return and say ?thank you? or just return to say hi Ms. Marinaro. It takes a really loving, patient person to be a teacher, and to be a Special Education teacher takes even more! You have to admire Joan for what she did, and even if she only reached one of those special needs students then she has accomplished much more than most people will ever hope to achieve in their lifetime!
Joan will be remembered as a sweet, gentle, loving person who was always sensitive to the needs of others. We all know, she was a cat lover and has had as many as 23 cats living with her while trying to save them all. When moving back east, she drove cross-country with 12 cats in tow, wheeling them into the hotel on the luggage cart each time she stopped. She leaves behind three of her beloved felines; Wishes her King, Twink and Bently. These were her children. Joan loved all creatures and it would not be unusual to see her stopping on the roadside helping a turtle hurry across, or to find her outside feeding the wild turkeys, chipmunks, raccoons or other wild animals, which visited her yard. She even had raccoons that entered thru her cat door to help themselves to the food. But Joan thought that was wonderful, eventually having the babies pat her feet with their tiny paws while she sat on the porch. She was a vegetarian for more than 20 years. People would ask, do you eat fish and she would reply, "Oh no critters, nothing with a face, it would not be fair."
Besides her love of animals, children and family, Joan was an avid gardener. She took great pleasure spending many hours digging in her garden, seeding and planting. She found gardening therapeutic, relaxing, rewarding and a joy to watch grow. Purple colors would dominate her garden and her wardrobe. She had a ball this summer in the garden.
Joan often traveled to the beat of a different drum...she had her own way of doing things, and she definitely lived in her own time zone! But that's what made the difference; that's what made her unique. She touched many lives and will be remembered fondly and missed terribly.
Robert Frost best summed up Joan's journey through life in the last line of his poem, "The Road Not Taken".
"Two roads diverged in a wood. and I, I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference!"
We are going to miss you Joan!
Mike & Barb Marinaro
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