Obituary
A Celebration of Life Joan C Saunders
April 8, 1931 – June 23, 2023
Joan Carolyn Ditzenberger was born in Mineola, Long Island, New
York. The oldest of four children, she attended Public Schools in the Nassau
County area, until age 13, when Joan and her family moved to Miami,
Florida. Once settled, her family became members at St. James Evangelical
Lutheran Church, where Joan began teaching the young toddlers Sunday
School class and also sang in the chancel choir.
Joan was an outstanding scholar and at age 16, she graduated Salutatorian
from Ponce de Leon Senior High. After school and on Saturdays, Joan
worked for the F. W. Woolworth Company. Following graduation, she
found employment with the Prudential Insurance Company, working her
way up to office manager. During her 10 years with "the Pru" (as she often
referred to it) she met and married her first husband, John Durr. They had
two children (William and Kathryn), however, after 13 years they agreed to
dissolve their marriage.
Shortly thereafter, Joan married Dan Saunders who had been married and
had two daughters. They settled in Hialeah, blending both families into
one. In March of 1970 Joan gave birth to a son (Daniel).
Now a family of seven, Joan became a stay-at-home housewife and
mother. A few years later she began working at North Hialeah Baptist
Church teaching kindergarten. Some of her grandchildren were even her
students. Their home was always active with five children, but Joan never
stopped being ever-faithful to her Christian upbringing. She and Dan joined
St. Andrews Lutheran Church, where Joan was active in teaching Sunday
School and participating in various church functions. In 1997 Joan received
an award from the LCMS Florida/Georgia District for “Volunteer Teacher
of the Year”. In her later years when the children were grown and on their
own, Joan went back to teaching Bible classes part-time for many years at
Faith Lutheran Church and School in Hialeah, retiring in 2011. Dan and Joan
were married for 49 years until his passing in 2017.
During her amazing 92 years before going Home to Heaven, Joan always
kept her needlework and sewing skills active by sewing clothes, crafting
quilts, crocheting blankets and kitchen towels, and making stuffed dolls. She
always remembered birthdays of family members and friends, sending cards
for all occasions. Joan was a loving grandma. Her grandchildren were her
pride and joy. Whenever you saw Joan, she greeted you with a smile and
warm heart. A fine Christian woman who epitomized Proverbs 31:10-31 –
“a woman of courage; virtuous, strong and selfless; trustworthy; working
willingly with her hands; bringing good, not harm, all the days of her life; a
woman who feared the Lord - she shall be praised!!”
Survived by her son, William Durr, daughter, Kathryn (Gordon) Meyers, son
Daniel (Rhonda) Saunders, brother Robert Ditzenberger, sister Ruth
Birdwell, 10 grandchildren, 5 great grandchildren, and numerous nieces and
nephews. One grandchild predeceased her.
A Celebration of Life will be held at St Andrews Lutheran Church,
575 W 68 th St, Hialeah, FL on Wednesday, July 5. Visitation from 10:00 am
to 11:15 am with a service starting at 11:30 am followed by a 1:00 pm
committal at Vista Memorial Gardens. In lieu of flowers, donations may be
made to Holy Cross Lutheran School, 650 NE 135 th St, North Miami, FL
33161.