Joan Schaff Terranova

She was born on May 13th, 1944, the daughter of the late Norman & Florence Schaff (Bigelow) in Dane County, Wisconsin. Shortly after birth, her family moved to Fairfield, CT where she spent her childhood. As a child, Joan was particularly close with her father Norman and her late brother Roddy (Norman Jr).

She graduated from Garrison Forest School (GFS) in Owings Mills, Maryland in 1962. While attending GFS, Joan made lifelong friends with whom she remained close to throughout her adult life. It was at GFS where she developed a fondness for horseback riding, and where she spent treasured time at ranches with classmates.

Later in life, Joan completed higher education courses at Davis and Elkins College, University of Bridgeport, and the Katherine Gibbs Business School. She was a lifelong learner.

Joan was a devoted and experienced world traveler. In her lifetime she travelled to four continents and marveled at many of the world’s wonders.

Joan’s employment history was adventuresome and diverse. Between working in sales and real estate, Joan stayed busy and engaged.

Joan was particularly proud of the time she spent working on the 1980 presidential campaign for President Reagan where she had multiple roles within the campaign, specifically working with President Reagan’s Press Secretary: Herb Klein. Joan was never shy in discussing politics.

Joan generously volunteered her time working for nonprofit organizations. While living in Madison and Essex she was actively involved in working with the local Chamber of Commerce, and local Music Schools. Joan came from a long lineage of philanthropy and volunteer work, she was never opposed to donating her time for a cause where she could make a positive impact for the better.

In her golden years, Joan patronized local art organizations, and particularly loved going to New York City to visit museums, attending Operas and Symphonies, richly immersing herself and supporting the Arts.

Joan was a communicator and so enjoyed being around and interacting with friends and family. To be certain, she was thoughtful and kind. Her mission was always to improve someone else’s day with anything from a flower to a pleasant conversation and everything in between.

If you found her sitting down, it was no doubt with one of her favorite books. She was an avid reader and consumed everything from fiction, current events, sports, and mostly non-fiction in her later years. Joan was always excited to share with friends a new author she had discovered or a newly discovered fact of history she gleaned from her reading.

In later years Joan was a member of the Essex Garden Club and filled her house with colorful bouquets of fresh flowers year-round. Joan also had a fondness for animals. Throughout her life, she had dogs surrounding her. Her most recent, Sofia Loren (Brown Labrador Retriever) went everywhere with her, and they shared many precious memories.

The number one joy of Joan’s life was to spend time with her family. She is survived by her son Torr Terranova, his wife Brittany, her grandchildren Hudson and Caiden. She will be warmly remembered and deeply missed by family and friends.

The family would like to thank the entire Essex Meadows community for their acceptance, care, and compassion they showed Joan throughout the last decade. Joan was so grateful to be able to connect and share so many memories with the members of Essex Meadows community. The family would also like to thank the caregivers that looked after Joan for the past several years ensuring Joan’s quality of life stayed as high as it could be.

Family and friends are invited to attend a Celebration of Life at Essex Meadows on Friday December 12 at 3:30 PM.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Community Music School, 90 Main Street, Centerbrook, CT 06409 https://cmsct.org/support/endowment/