Joan Carol Baxter Hamilton

Joan Carol Baxter Hamilton, 82, of Cary, passed away Friday, June 5, 2015 surrounded by family. She was born August 29, 1932, in Detroit MI, the daughter of Charles Emil Baxter and Zelpha Florence Brookbank Baxter.

Joan earned her BA degree in Education in 1954 at Wayne University (now called Wayne State University) College of Education, in Detroit MI. She received a Master’s Degree in Library Science (AMLS) from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, School of Information and Library Science (SILS) Rackham Graduate School.

On August 24, 1953 she was united in marriage to Lawrence George “Larry” Hamilton. During Larry’s service in the US Air Force the couple resided in England. Subsequently the couple lived in Dearborn Heights MI, Racine WI, Wausau WI, and Cincinnati OH. Prior to moving to Cary NC, they split their time between Cape Coral FL and Lake Santee near Greensburg IN.

Joan loved reading, cooking, bird watching, boating, and spending time with family.

She is survived by her husband; two children, Nancy (Robert) Briggs of Cary and Mark (Sharyn) Hamilton of Superior, Colorado; one brother, Richard Baxter of Laguna Miguel, CA; three grandchildren, Laura (Josh) Nowak, Allison (Travis) Drake, and Matthew Hamilton; and two great grandchildren, Emily and Elijah Nowak.

Funeral services will be held Saturday, June 13 at 3:00 p.m. in the Brown-Wynne Funeral Home chapel, 200 SE Maynard Rd, Cary NC. Visitation will be Friday, June 12 from 6:00-8:00 p.m. also at Brown-Wynne.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Transitions LifeCare (founded as Hospice of Wake County), 250 Hospice Circle, Raleigh NC 27607; The Parkinson's Disease Foundation, 1359 Broadway, Suite 1509, New York NY 10018; or First United Methodist Church, 117 S Academy Street, Cary NC 27511.