Joan (Picard) Duesterdick

Joan Duesterdick (Picard) of Muncie, Indiana passed away peacefully on Thursday, September 9, 2023, at the age of 92.  In her final days, she was with her family, who loved her deeply.

Joan was born on March 3rd, 1931, in Elizabeth, New Jersey.  She was the youngest of three children of Ernest and Mabel (Lechner) Picard.  Joan loved growing up in Elizabeth, New Jersey, and spending summers at the family beach cottage in Pine Beach, NJ.

Joan attended Battin High School in Elizabeth, New Jersey, and completed her bachelor’s degree at Rutgers-Douglas College.  She went on to teach PE at Fairfax High School in Virginia and was a member of both the League of Women Voters and the PTA.  Later in life, she obtained her medical records certification and real estate license.  Raising her children in the 1960s and 70s, she was years ahead of her time, becoming a self-taught expert regarding nutrition and healthy living.

Joan was kind, creative, smart, fun, and had an enduring enthusiasm for life.  She made a deep impression on everyone she met.  She was a woman of strong intellect and had an indomitable spirit.  While never an actual Jeopardy contestant, she won many games against any friends or family who dared compete.

Joan was passionate about many things: her loving family, a wide circle of friends, and many pets (dogs, cats, goats, and birds).  She loved and was accomplished at skiing, tennis, and pickleball.  She won multiple medals in pickleball in the Northern Virginia Senior Olympics.

In a life that touched so many, none benefitted more from Joan’s special spirit than her devoted family.  She was predeceased by her husband of 68 years, Roy Duesterdick; sister, Marian Rigney; brother, Ernest Picard and her parents:  Ernest and Mabel Pichard.  She left behind three children Kirsten Smith (Rodger), Kurt (Deb Dickenson), and Gretchen Loss (Lew); three grandchildren: Kayla Kidwell (Eric), Dakota Smith (Rachael Surowiec), and Spenser Smith (Kristen Cannan-Smith), five great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.  They will miss her greatly.

A private memorial will be held in the future.  If you want to honor Joan’s life and memory donate to a cause you care about and take your vitamins.

Arrangements are entrusted to Parson Mortuary Cremation Center.

Online condolences may be made to the family in care of www.parsonmortuary.com.

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