Joan Welton

Joan H. Welton, age 86, passed away at home in Aurora, Colorado on August 29, 2022.  Joan was born on February 13, 1936 in Grand Island, Nebraska.

Born and raised in Grand Island, Joan was an older protective sister to Shirley, Claude, and Jerry and enjoyed spending time with her extended close-knit family that included her mom Wilma, dad Edward, grandmother Winnie, aunts, uncles, and many cousins. She attended Lincoln Elementary School, Walnut Junior High School, and graduated from Grand Island Senior High School in 1954.

It was when she was visiting her cousin Sharon (Poole) Morhain that Joan met Sharon’s paperboy Jim whose flirtation failed when he bumped his bike into hers which was quite annoying to Joan. But a year or so later at a chance meeting at a mutual friend’s birthday party, Jim and Joan met again and their romance bloomed.

Joan enjoyed playing the violin in the school orchestra and also worked as an usherette at the Capitol Theatre. Soon after graduating from high school, Jim and Joan were married on September 12, 1954 and Jim swept her off to California where he was stationed in the Navy.

Joan and Jim have three children, Jim, Julie, and Jennifer who they raised in Grand Island along with a menagerie of pets. The family enjoyed camping, boating, and traveling across the U.S. often to attend Nebraska Cornhusker bowl games. She was known for baking German chocolate cakes for birthdays using her Aunt Edna’s recipe. After the children flew the coop, Joan passed her real estate license exam on the first try and was a realtor in Grand Island for several years. Joan and Jim enjoyed playing bridge and she was a member of the Grand Island Women’s Club. Joan was also a skilled seamstress and made the wedding dresses for both of her daughters and the draperies for their new home in Grand Island.

In 1986, Joan and Jim moved to Denver Colorado where their daughter Julie resided. They enjoyed exploring and camping in the mountains. She and Jim also continued their travel adventures by venturing overseas to visit their son Jim and his family when he was stationed in the Air Force in England and Italy, and their daughter Jennifer and her family in the San Francisco area. While living in Denver, Joan and Jim were members of the Peace with Christ Lutheran Church and were members of the International Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) for more than 20 years, attending meetings in different locales during their travels. Joan was also a BSF children’s leader and attended national conferences.

Joan was not only a devoted mother, but was also involved in the daily lives of her grandchildren, chauffeuring them to school and sporting activities, helping them with homework, attending school and sporting events, and being a confidante and forging a bond of unconditional love with each grandchild.

Joan will be missed every day by her husband James, her loyal dog Izzy, and her loving family to include her son Jim (and Ann) Welton of Alexandria, VA, daughters Julie Welton of Aurora, CO, and Jennifer (and Allen) Welton-Hazlip of Denver, CO, nine grandchildren (Megan, Zach, Jake, Luke, George, Ellie, Jessica, Cale, and Cameron) and two great grandchildren (Noah and Lyla), her sister Shirley Roberts of Grand Island, NE and brother Jerry Rinke of Omaha, NE. Joan was preceded in death by her parents Ed and Wilma Rinke, brother Claude Rinke, and son in-law Mike Monkman.

Visitation will be available at 1 - 2 pm and the service will be at 2 pm on Wednesday, 7 September at Horan-McConaty Funeral Home 11150 E. Dartmouth Ave, Aurora, CO.  Burial will be at 9:30 am, Thursday, 8 September at Fort Logan National Cemetery, Denver, CO.