Joan Marvin Undeland

Joan Marvin Undeland died on September 29 at the age of 95. She went the way she wanted: gently, peacefully, surrounded by loved ones, and in the home she and her husband, Richard, bought in 1967 and cherished ever since.

Born in Riverside, California in 1931, Joan was indomitable. She graduated from Pomona College in 1953, and a year later, met Richard Undeland in San Francisco and married him. Then the real adventure began. Starting as students in Cairo, they shared a fulfilling 40 years at Richard’s diplomatic postings in Lebanon, Tunisia, Egypt (two more times), Vietnam, Thailand, Algeria, Morocco, Kuwait, Lebanon (again), Jordan, Kuwait, Syria, Saudi Arabia, with their final post back in Tunisia. To each, she brought an insatiable curiosity, a powerful intellect and a strong determination to help people.

Joan created welcoming homes wherever they landed, raised four children, entertained constantly, and formed friendships across cultures. She was a true partner in Richard’s life and work. He understood this, saying, “I cannot conceive of the representation part of the job…except in terms of Joan’s talents and graciousness, her contributions in many cases dwarfing mine.”

She was always keen to learn about and discuss a vast array of topics right up to the end of her life. She had a particular passion for archaeology, the English language, classical music, and food (she was still thinking through a cookbook, "The Other Mediterranean: From the Stone Age to the Microwave" a month before she died). She was a ferocious casino and cribbage player, could do crossword puzzles without the graph, and possessed an astonishing breadth of knowledge, often with the most unexpected details.

She was an accomplished educator. While living in Egypt, she earned a master’s degree in linguistics at Cairo University, helped develop textbooks for teaching English in the state schools, and taught in Alexandria. At the University of Jordan, she started, organized and directed the first English-teaching program for the Faculty of Science. She taught elementary school in Syria and Saudi Arabia, advised the University of Kuwait on its English-teaching program, and in Tunisia headed an international women’s group where she was especially proud of fostering an environment in which real differences on subjects like Operation Desert Storm could be discussed with compassion, openness and civility. Joan also served for over a decade on the Board of Trustees for St. Stephen’s School in Rome.

Joan’s interest in archaeology was serious, scholarly and enthusiastic. She participated in archaeological excavations in Jordan, Syria and Egypt, published a paper in the Jordanian Department of Antiquities Annual and even threw a “Bronze Age Dinner” for the archaeology community in Amman, replete with a sheep encased in a clay pot and cooked in a pit underground.

Above all, Mom’s love of family defined her life. Her greatest pride and source of joy were her children: David, John, Anne, and Charlie. She is survived by her children and her six grandchildren, Natalie, Milo, Max, Erika, Eric and Daria.

She will be missed.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Joan’s name to the Library of Congress, where she gifted the musical autograph book of her great-great grandfather, hymn writer William B. Bradbury, containing signatures of Schumann, Mendelssohn, Jenny Lind and others, and where she attended many concerts over the years.