Joan W. Schmiedel

Joan Marie (White) Schmiedel passed away peacefully on April 26, 2020 after a brief illness of Covid-19. She was born in Danbury in December 1929 to T. Edgar and Willetta (Morlock) White. In addition to her parents, she was predeceased by her beloved husband Howard F. Schmiedel Jr., who she now joins after missing for the past 28 years.

A lifelong Danbury resident, she grew up on Ninth Avenue and graduated from Danbury High School in 1947. She took her first job at Southern New England Telephone Company after high school and worked there for five years.

She met Howard on a blind date arranged by his sister Mary, who she worked with at the phone company. That date went well, and they were married in September 1952. They lived on Garfield Avenue and High Ridge Road prior to moving to her current residence on Jefferson Avenue in 1973.

Together with Howard, she happily worked hard to give her children a meticulously kept home, love, encouragement, a good education, and countless memorable adventures. They also instilled in each of their children a good work ethic and conveyed the importance of treating others as you would want to be treated yourself.

Joan had great pride in her family and was a wonderful homemaker. She enjoyed baking cakes with her famous icing (thousands over the years), hosting family picnics, helping with paper routes, and always with a smile and enthusiastic attitude.

She loved working in the yard, something that her father passed along to her. She was meticulous to a fault when raking leaves and enjoyed gardening. Holidays were also very special with Christmas and Easter decorations and everyone welcome to share a meal at her table. She also loved all the family dogs and Grand dogs.

Joan was thrilled to get a part-time position at the News-Times, where she established long term friendships. Once her youngest child started high school, Joan started to work full-time for the City of Danbury in the Town Clerk’s Office. She retired as an Assistant Town Clerk in 1997 after 17 years of service.

The yearly Camping trip to Gloucester MA was the pinnacle of family fun and a place that she continued to visit with Tom up until 2018. It was our home away from home and a place that gave the entire family lifelong memories.

Joan lost Howard to a heart attack in 1992. Although broken hearted, she was determined to move forward with a smile and cherished her time with family even more. She loved to travel with her family, especially out west exploring many National Parks. Joan and her sister also explored California, Washington, Oregon and took an Alaskan cruise. In addition, she loved traveling to visit her grandchildren. One of her biggest highlights was meeting Cardinal Dolan at the airport. He had just arrived on the same flight as her son Ken, and the timing happened to be perfect for a picture.

In her later years, Joan always looked forward to visits from her children, going out to dinner, shopping, and having her nightly ice cream while watching TV with her son Tom, her best friend, and roommate.

Joan was an active member of St. Peter’s Catholic Church and the Ladies Guild. She enjoyed the summer family picnics, as well as donating and assisting at their Tag Sales. Joan volunteered at Danbury Hospital in the Cancer Ward after losing her mother to cancer. She appreciated the help she received and wanted to pay it forward. She also volunteered at Ability Beyond Disability. She was a kind, gentle, giving, and selfless person.

She is survived by five children, Robert and Anne (Ridgefield), Thomas (Danbury), Kenneth and Maureen (Texas), Richard (Danbury), and Patricia and her partner John Carroll (Greenwich). She is also survived by her eight grandchildren, Lauren (Schmiedel) Higgins and Jimmy, James Schmiedel and Leah, Matthew Schmiedel and John Simpkins, Kristen Schmiedel, Elizabeth (Schmiedel) Rainbolt and Jeff, Mark Schmiedel, Ryan Schmiedel, and Meghan Schmiedel and Ric Delgado, as well as five great grandchildren, Lucy, Claire, Conrad, Sloane, and Evelyn. She is also survived by her loving sister Mary Lou Mortimer, Sisters-in-Law Sally Schmiedel and Zita Schmiedel, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins.

A memorial service will be held at a date in the future.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to Danbury Regional Hospice or St. Peters Catholic Church in Danbury.