Joan Kelley Lutz

She was born August 25, 1945 to John Gorman Lutz and Maxine (Kelley) Lutz in Freeport, Long Island, NY and grew up in Garden City, NY. She received a BS degree at the University of Colorado, a Master of Library Science (Class President) from UCLA and a Master’s in business administration from San Francisco State University (Class Vice President.) The family moved to London in 1967 and in 1970 she married Richard Lee Winegar and later lived in The Hague, Netherlands and Abqaiq, Saudi Arabia. Two sons were born: Todd Richard Winegar in Newport Beach and Andrew John Winegar in The Hague. After careers with the Orange County Library and McDonnell Douglas (Manager of International Marketing and Space Station) she became a financial planner with Union Bank, World Savings and Washington Mutual. She was a reader, researcher, investor, and educator by nature, especially teaching about financial planning and investing.

Joan was always interested in art history, museums and was a very active genealogist doing family histories for friends, children in foster care and her own family from Germany, Switzerland, England, and Ireland. She had a lifelong knack for reuniting people, whether by genealogy, DNA, class and sorority reunions and Facebook groups. She loved to explore the world, largely Europe and the Middle East, and was a proud member of the Traveler Century Club, having visited 105 countries and had been around the world at least four times. She belonged to OLLI (Osher Lifelong Learning Institute) at UC Irvine and developed classes there, as well as being a lifetime member of Alpha Chi Omega sorority, continually organizing and reuniting them. An avid newspaper reader and always up on current events, prepared to discuss the events of the day. Always happiest surrounded by family and friends in her home and patio or in airports around the world on her way somewhere.

She was the proud descendant of the Kelly family (in America since 1749), Farrens family (first white settlers in SW Iowa in 1840), Vandergrift (Dutch traders on Manhattan Island in 1600’s), and Lutz family from Hochdorf, Germany where family members still live. There are seven ancestors who served in the Revolutionary War. Wagon trains went west from Virginia and Pennsylvania to Indiana, Ohio, Tennessee and Kentucky to Iowa and Oregon, pioneers all.

Joan was predeceased by her parents, sisters Mary (Lutz) Jones and Susie; brothers Steven and David Lutz; and niece Kelley Jones. She is survived by sons Todd Winegar (Melissa) and Andrew Winegar(Erin Katz); grandchildren Rheannon and Kaiden Winegar and Ric Morrison; nephew Russell Jones (Lora) and his children Ivee and Jace; and her cousin Hope (Rhodabarger) DuBois and daughters Christine (DuBois) Doskey and Caroline DuBois. We are sure Joan has already organized some big reunions and discovered new family trees to add to the family story.