Jan. 31, 1931 ~ April 19, 2025
It is with great sadness that the family of Joan White Anderson, 94, announces her passing on April 19, 2025. Joan passed away peacefully in the presence of her family and is survived by her husband of 71 years, Paul B. Anderson, and their children: Robert, Mark (Daphne), Lynn (Steve), and John Paul (Abby), as well as six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. She is preceded in death by her sisters, Jane White and Jeanne Greene.
Born in 1931 in Russellville, Arkansas, to Mildred (née Rutherford) and John White, Jr., Joan moved shortly thereafter with her family to Little Rock. She was a student at St. Joseph’s Academy, Villa Carondelet, in Tucson, Arizona, and graduated from Little Rock Central High School. An accomplished violinist, Joan, at the age of 11, traveled alone by train to Grand Central Station in New York City to attend a music camp in New Hampshire. Summers included visits with her mother’s family in Minnesota and, since the age of one, at property her family owned in Colorado, where she became a skilled horsewoman.
Joan graduated with a degree in history from Sophie Newcomb College (now Tulane University) in New Orleans in 1952, where she was a member of Pi Beta Phi Sorority. After graduation, she remained in New Orleans and attended a secretarial school. In 1952, Joan met her future husband, Paul B. Anderson, a student at Tulane University School of Medicine. They married on June 11, 1953, and moved to Denver, Colorado, where Paul interned. While living in Denver, Joan was their financial provider, working as a secretary for the KD Owens Oil Drilling Company to supplement Paul’s $50 per month salary. At the completion of Paul’s internship, they moved to Spokane, Washington, where Paul served as an Air Force physician at Geiger Air Force Base. In 1957, they moved to Neosho, Missouri, where Paul joined his medical school classmate and brother-in-law, George Olive, in general practice.
Joan was a caring and attentive mother of four children in their early lives and as they became independent adults. She was a loving and supportive wife to Paul and shared her love of the Meeker area, inspiring them to keep a portion of her family’s property on the South Fork of the White River. The property was acquired by her grandfather in 1901. In 1976, Joan and Paul built a cabin where they vacationed every summer. After Paul’s retirement, they enjoyed spending the summer and fall there. Summers in Colorado included multi-day horseback trips through the Flat Top Wilderness Area, evening cookouts, and enjoying the company of family and friends. Joan took cooking classes and became an excellent chef. She readily made friends and respected their confidence. She was active in the community as a charter member of the Neosho JO Chapter of PEO, enjoyed hosting bridge parties with her friends, and was an active member of the First Presbyterian Church of Neosho, Missouri. Joan and Paul enjoyed traveling and visited France, Spain, Scotland, England, Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, New Zealand, and Australia. She renewed relationships with family members who lived near Newark, England, with whom her mother had been in contact during World War II. Joan and Paul had an abiding love of the American West and in Paul’s retirement, they traveled to Arizona, Alaska, and many places in between.
The family will hold a memorial service at a future date. In lieu of flowers, please donate to Cottey College in Nevada, Missouri (www.cottey.edu/give/) or Pioneers Health Foundation in Meeker, Colorado (www.pioneershealthfoundation.org). The family also wishes to thank the staff at The Manor at Elfindale whose love, care, and friendship Joan greatly appreciated.
