Joan Kroto

Born on June 19th, 1950, in Wantagh, New York, to Alfred and Grace (Horgan) Zipser, Joan was the second youngest of four sisters. She graduated from Ithaca College in 1972 and worked as an assisting editor for Prentice Hall before becoming a homemaker. In 1976, she married her husband of 46 years, Ronald Victor Kroto. Together, they would live in Riverdale, New York; Hackensack, New Jersey; Memphis, Tennessee; Westerville, Ohio; Cincinnati, Ohio; Roanoke, Virginia; and finally, Clayton, North Carolina. In 1987, the couple would give birth to twin sons: Andrew Joseph and Mark David.

Joan’s life was filled with love for her family and a selfless regard for human and animal life. A lifelong anglophile and voracious consumer of news and crossword puzzles—and Wordle as of late—Joan was rarely seen without a knitting needle weaving one of her famous scarfs. A challenger to Cesar Milan for the title of “Dog Whisper,” a lover of dogs her entire life. She found a sense of calm and happiness in spending time with family at her son’s waterfront home in Dagsboro, Delaware, and watching the wild herons on the marsh.

Although her introverted disposition and small stature could sometimes erroneously be mistaken for fragility, make no mistake: she faced every adversity with the fearlessness of the strongest among us, including her final unforeseen battle, during which she defied the medical odds until the very end.

Joan passed on her courageousness to her twin sons, most notably Andrew, who lives with the achievement of overcoming his deafness and subsequently becoming the unabashed success that he is today as a result of her parenting. Ultimately, her greatest sense of pride, joy, and achievement were her sons, and she left this world as an unequivocally successful mother—the most important thing in her life.

Joan is survived by her devoted husband Ronald; two sons, Andrew and Mark; three sisters, Patricia, Judith and husband Gary, and Jill; sister-in-law, Peggy and husband Jeffrey; many cousins, nieces and nephews, friends, neighbors; and above all else, her beloved border terrier dog, Mindy, “the best tripawd that ever was.”

A private celebration of Joan's life will be held on April 22, 2023 in Dagbsoro, DE.

In lieu of flowers or gifts please donate in Joan's honor to one of her favorite charities:

North Carolina State University, College of Veterinary Medicine- VetMed Companion Pet Assistance Fund: https://give.ncsu.edu/

St Jude's Children's Hospital: https://www.stjude.org/donate/donate-to-st-jude.html?sc_icid=header-btn-donate-now

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.BrownWynneCary.com for the Kroto family.