Joanne Love Rhoads

Joanne was born on September 6, 1950 in New York City, the third of five siblings. She attended Marymount Manhattan College, where she met her husband Dan at a West Point dance, and the two were married on May 29, 1971. They lived in Kansas and Fort Monroe, Virginia before both attended the University of Virginia, Joanne for medical school and Dan for law. They settled in Bethesda, MD as Joanne completed her medical training and worked at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, and remained there as they welcomed and raised two children, Jonathan and Sarah. Joanne received a Masters in Public Health from Johns Hopkins University during this time, and went on to work at both the FDA and NIH.

She was a dedicated and brilliant physician, and always viewed medicine as her calling in life. She practiced as an infectious disease doctor at the start of the AIDS epidemic, and never wavered in her commitment to her patients, even in the face of fear and stigma. So many people’s lives were changed because of her care.

Joanne was an avid traveler, and took joy in exploring the world first with Dan, and then her children. She loved reading every single sign in every museum, a fitting approach for the woman who would always go back to the footnotes and original text for whatever she was reading about at the moment. She was creative and a talented seamstress, making everything from clothes to curtains and pillows. She was always up for a new project, especially if she could then delegate it to Dan.

Joanne’s great joy in life was her family. She loved to spend time with her husband, children, and later her grandchildren. She brought so much love and laughter to every family gathering. She is survived by her husband Dan, son Jonathan (Melissa), daughter Sarah (Brandon), and her grandchildren Everett, Ryan, and Avery, as well as her siblings Arnold, Bert (Barb), Kathy, Marion (Eamon), and their children. She is predeceased by her parents, Mary “Mae” and Cecil “Bud”, and by the dogs and horses that she loved.

An evening visitation will be held on Thursday, June 12, 2025 from 5:00PM until 8:00PM at Joseph Gawler's Sons Funeral Home located at 5130 Wisconsin Avenue NW Washington, DC 20016 where a funeral service will be held on Friday, June 13, 2025 at 11:00AM with a visitation beginning at 10:00AM. Interment will be held at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Joanne’s name to Save the Children or a charity of choice. She particularly loved contributing to organizations that focused on the wellbeing of children and the provision of needed medical care.