Joan Ross

ROSS, Joan Teresa (nee Heitz). Beloved wife of George A. Ross. Devoted mother of Amy Smith and the late John Paul Ross. Loving grandmother of seven. Great grandmother of five. Dear sister of Elizabeth Grace. Also survived by many nieces and nephews. She will be missed by many friends from coast to coast. Preceded in death by her parents; son; and six siblings, Robert, Catherine, Frank, Ralph & Fr. Louis Heitz, and Mary (Virgil) German. Joan was born on July 2, 1933 in Delphos, OH; a daughter of Otto & Rose (nee Sauterman) Heitz. She was a graduate of St. John High School in 1951 and earned her B.S. in education from the College of St. Teresa in Winona, WI in 1955. She did additional studies at the University of Arizona extension in Guadalajara, Mexico. After teaching her first six years at Ross High School, she moved on to Sycamore High School where she met her husband, George. They were married on Thanksgiving Day, 1962. Joan later taught at OLSH school in Reading. Her last seventeen years of active teaching were at St. Margaret Mary School in North College Hill. While there, she received the Ohio Governor's Award for Excellence in teaching of science which she attributed to her student's enthusiasm and hard work. With their mutual love of history and travel, Joan and George took their children to all 50 states, Canada, Central America, and several European countries; making frequent stops at historical sites, and National Monuments. She was a member of the Springdale Garden Club and a long time member of the N.R.A. George described his wife as a multi-tasker who could do anything she set her mind to. Joan passed away on Friday, February 24, 2017 after complications from diabetes. Special thanks to Vitas Hospice for their compassionate care during the past several months.

Friends may greet the family at St. Gabriel Church, 48 W Sharon Rd., Glendale, OH 45246 on Tuesday, February 28, 2017 from 11:00 AM until time of Mass of Eternal Rest at 12 Noon. Burial will follow at Oak Hill Cemetery.