In loving memory of
Joan Lenart

• Passed away on July 15, 2020

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Joan Clare (Linnenburger) Lenart, 88, died Wednesday July 15, 2020, at her home in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, surrounded by loving family, after complications due to Parkinson’s Disease. Her parents were Julia E. (Matzelle) Gregurich, Gilbert Linnenburger, and stepfather Joseph L. Gregurich, who raised her as his own from a young age.
Born on September 25, 1931, in Owensville, Indiana, Joan grew up in Joliet, Illinois. She attended Joliet Township High School, graduating in 1949. She went on to Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois, and received a Bachelor of Arts in Education in 1953. She met her husband Stanley Joseph at Illinois State in the library on campus, when he asked her in the library how to spell the word Khachaturian. Their first date was at the original Steak ‘n’ Shake in Normal, IL. They married on January 26, 1951 and moved to Batavia, Illinois, Stanley’s hometown. They raised a family of six children while both were teachers at JB Nelson grade school in Batavia, IL. Joan taught 1st grade at JB Nelson from the late 1960s to the mid-1990s, when she retired. Both Joan and Stan moved from Batavia, IL, to New Smyrna Beach, Florida, in 1999.
Joan was a loving wife and mother. She loved spending time with all her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. She was a voracious reader and enjoyed knitting. A devout Catholic, she loved going to church. She was quick-witted and had a wonderful smile that could light up a room. Joan was very easy going, non-judgmental, and able to strike up a conversation with anyone.
She is preceded in death by her husband of 63 years, Stanley Joseph Lenart.
She is survived by her 6 children, Brian (Helen) Lenart, Bruce Lenart, Cheryl Lenart, Anita Zavala, Greg Lenart, and Andrea (Brian) Sarro, 7 grandchildren; Che Zavala, Chelsea (Zavala) McCullough, Zachary Zavala, Bailey Lenart, Hannah Lenart, William Lenart and Mariel Lenart, and 3 great grandchildren, Kiana Scott, Christian Scott, and Tessa Scott, all of whom brought great joy to her later years.
Memorial gifts may be made in Joan’s honor to The American Parkinson Disease Association (APDA) at www.apdaparkinson.org or the Batavia Historical Society at www.bataviahistoricalsociety.org.
Mass will be held at Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Church in New Smyrna Beach on July 22, 2020, at 11:00 am. Interment will follow in Edgewater-New Smyrna Cemetery. You may leave your private condolences for the Lenart family at https://baldwincremation.com/category/obituaries/
The Baldwin Brothers Funeral home in New Smyrna Beach, FL, has been entrusted with arrangements.