Joan Kendig

JOAN KENDIG 1942 – 2022
Joan Kendig, beloved wife of Keith and dear mother of her son Chris, passed away peacefully on July 8 after suffering a recent stroke. If three ideas could describe Joan’s inner self, they’d be loving, creative, and “ahead of the curve.” Joan and Keith were computer matched by a psychologist in 1968, in the days of IBM cards and a room-filling machine, decades before today’s computer dating; the match-up led to 53 years of happy marriage.
Early on, Joan and Keith bonded over French classical music as well as healthy lifestyles. Keith had a 500-page tome entitled “Heart Attack: Are You a Candidate?” He had read bits of it here and there, but after one date, Joan asked, “Can I borrow that book?” A week later she had read the whole tome, and knew far more than I did! I was blown over, and there was then no way I’d let this remarkable girl slip away from me. Marriage came a few weeks later.
Her folks were far from wealthy, but Joan’s unique creativity led to a beautiful wedding. Held at her godmother’s elegant home, the whole affair was nearly cost-free. She had sewn her own wedding dress; she and her mom put together delicious food for the nearly 50 guests, and Joan baked a four-tier carrot wedding cake; I and my future brother-in-law went into the nearby fields and collected flowers for the many guests; her youngest brother snapped hundreds of memorable photos. The happiness was contagious and the wedding unforgettable.
After marriage, talk soon turned to the tome’s recommendation of a more plant-based diet. In those days, becoming a vegetarian was a big deal, and we both found it a real challenge. Keith would propose various mixtures of ground seeds, grains, nuts and the like, and Joan’s natural talent in the kitchen would turn the mixture into patties or “meatballs.” These creations formed dinner for the next two years, and Joan rated each attempt as “Ugh!”, “OK” or “Very Nice.” The Very Nice recipes were collected together and turned into a book, subsequently published by Arco, Inc. Joan demonstrated her creations on the TV show “The Morning Exchange!”
Joan’s major in college was English, and wrote a Master’s degree thesis on the poetry of William Blake. Her talents never went to waste – Keith wrote various mathematics books as a math teacher,
and Joan carefully read and edited each book, often suggesting better phrasing and correcting mistakes here and there. I perennially owe a big debt of gratitude for her generous input.
As the years went by, her interest in others’ personalities increased, and had an unquenchable curiosity and thirst for what made people tick. A nascent interest in astrology grew, and she became a real expert in reading natal charts. She became a professional member of the American Federation of Astrologers, developed a faithful clientele, and solved many personal problems presented to her. Her interest and excitement about astrology was contagious and led to classes on astrology held at our home; some of her students have since become professional astrologers.
Her love and unique talents will be greatly missed; we all wish her well in her transition to a different plane. Au revoir, dearest Joan!