Joan Holt Munro of Penllyn, PA, our beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother died October 7, 2024. She was 92.
An only child born October 15, 1931, to Alfred and Elizabeth (Wagner) Holt in Philadelphia, PA, Joan grew up in Northeast Philly and attended Olney High School. She met Robert Munro in Ocean City, NJ, and the two were married at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church on November 29, 1952. Robert preceded her in death on March 14, 2021.
Joan was mother to Heather O’Neill (Michael, deceased), Robert Munro (Monique), and David Munro (Mary Werner), and grandmother to Ian, Lisle, Ross, Bryn, Kayla, Kelsey, Holly, Colin, Liam, and Stella. She was great-grandmother to Bray, Munro, Sutton, Murphy, Auden, Aethan, Cora, Dennin, Garrett, Noa, and Lily.
She will be remembered for her easy-going, pleasant, and optimistic nature. As a young woman, she became a beautiful swimmer and dancer. Joan and Bob would often jitter bug to Glen Miller and Artie Shaw. They also traveled extensively around the world sharing unforgettable experiences. She even crawled into pyramids while Bob watched from a far. Her favorite singer was Frank Sinatra enough so that you would hear “Fly Me to the Moon” whenever her phone rang. Joan had a wonderful social life and became involved in many organizations and undertook numerous activities. She loved to read, play bridge and mahjong, and work on jigsaw puzzles. She loved a Cosmo and the Phillies (yelling at the tv when they lost). She made friends easily and kept them for life.
After moving to Vermont in 1973, Joan and her friend and skiing buddy (Paula) co-founded Paperback Exchange, a used paperback bookstore, which she ran until returning to the Philadelphia area in 1982. She then worked at Educational Testing Service, in Princeton, NJ, where she retired in 1995. Over the years, summers down the shore were spent in Ocean City, NJ.
Living in Pennsylvania, she joined the women’s golf league at Northampton Golf Club. And played until she turned 85. She glowed recalling the golf outings perhaps more than her golf game.
She could sew and knit, and golf and ski, the first two beautifully and the last two admirably. Over the decades, she kept a tradition of knitting stockings for each of her children, their spouses, her grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
Joan was a kind, loving, and always pleasant person and happiest when surrounded by her family. She was an active member of the Upper Dublin Lutheran Church community.
We will miss her dearly.
Relatives and friends are invited to attend Joan’s Funeral Service on Friday, October 25, 2024, at 2 PM at Upper Dublin Lutheran Church, 411 Susquehanna Road, Ambler, PA 19002, where her family will greet friends from 1 PM to 2 PM, prior to the service.
Family, friends, and others are to reminisce and honor the life of Joan Munro at a reception following the service at Georgetown of Philadelphia community room.
Georgetown of Philadelphia condominium gathering space:
133 Culpepper Drive,
Penllyn PA 19422.
.