Joan Anne (nee Smith) Lister, 90, passed away peacefully on January 21, 2023, surrounded by family, at Jersey Shore University Medical Center. Born in Newark, NJ, Joan was raised in Belleville and spent most of her life there before moving to Spring Lake, NJ in 1996. She and her husband, George, moved to Seabrook Retirement Community, Tinton Falls, NJ in 2012.

A graduate of Belleville High School, Joan was a stay-at-home mother to her two daughters, eventually working as a school crossing guard when her daughters were school age. A quintessential 50s homemaker (minus the pearls), Joan maintained an immaculate home and prepared a hot dinner (never breakfast food!) which was served promptly at 5:30 pm every evening. Her daughters remember the magical Christmases that she created, which they tried to replicate for their own children. Joan worked as a claims processor for Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey for twenty-five years, retiring in 1994.

No one was happier to have grandchildren than Joan, although she was heard to say “enough” when six arrived in a five year span. Her grandchildren have fond memories of their weekends in Spring Lake, where Grandma and Grandpa, along with an Entenmann’s crumb cake, welcomed them every visit. After a day at the beach, the grandkids would heed Grandma’s rule not to track a speck of sand into the house! As her grandchildren grew up, she kept in touch via text messages. When great-grandchildren began to arrive, GiGi looked forward to text messages and pictures, which kept her informed of the latest news.

In her younger years, Joan enjoyed bowling and belonged to multiple leagues. She came close to a perfect game, missing a strike on her final roll. The plaque, memorializing her accomplishment, was lost when the bowling alley burned down in 1977.

In her later years, Joan enjoyed crochet, crossword and jigsaw puzzles, Sudoku, books, plants, butterflies, trips to Atlantic City, and ice cream. An avid Yankees fan, Joan was particularly fond of Derek Jeter and Bernie Williams, but always believed she could manage the team better than Joe Girardi! Joan treasured her winters in Bird Bay Village in Venice, Florida, where she made lifelong friends.

When she could no longer care for George on her own, Joan was a faithful presence at The Gardens where her husband spent 6 ½ years before his death in 2020. 

Predeceased by George, her beloved husband of 67 years, her parents Roland and Mary (O’Neill) Smith, brother Roland Smith, Jr. and sister Barbara Santoro, Joan is survived by her two devoted daughters and sons-in-law, Karen and Joseph Murphy and Patricia and Stephen Kest; her loving grandchildren Christopher Murphy, Caitlin (Christopher) San Filippo, Matthew (Markela) Murphy, Sara Kest, Shannon (Jesse Gemberling-Johnson) Murphy and Zachary Kest; her cherished great-grandchildren Ryan, Samantha, Ava, Jack and Jay; her sister-in-law Marion Smith, as well as her nieces and nephews.

Visitation will be held at O’Brien Funeral Home, Route 35, Wall Township, NJ on Thursday, January 26, 2023 from 5-8 pm. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Friday, January 27, 2023 at 10:30 am at St. Catharine Church, Spring Lake, NJ. Entombment will follow at St. Anne Cemetery and Mausoleum, Wall Township, NJ. For more information or to send condolences, please visit www.obrienfuneralhome.com. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to either Market Street Mission (www.marketstreet.org) PO Box 1937, Morristown, NJ 07960 or St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital (www.stjude.org) 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105.