Joan Apel

Joan Apel
Joan (Dresser) Apel, 90, of South Windsor and formerly a longtime resident of Vernon, beloved wife of 70 years to George F. Apel, passed away peacefully at her home surrounded by her family on Wednesday, March 19, 2025. She was the second of the "Dresser Girls" born on February 17, 1935, in Rockville, to the late Allen and Janet (Goodrich) Dresser.
Joan was born and raised in Rockville, attended local schools and was a graduate of Rockville High School, Class of 1953. She then attended the University of Connecticut before marrying the love of her life, George F. Apel, on December 19, 1954, while he was on leave from the Navy. Their first date was on June 2, 1951. Her main focus was their family, but she worked outside the home part-time at the lab at Rockville Hospital and then as a paraprofessional in the Vernon school system. She had a keen interest and knowledge of birds (which she could identify by their calls), wildflowers and gardening. She made baskets in the Shaker tradition, decorated cakes including wedding and birthday cakes for family, knitted prayer shawls, collected salt and pepper shakers and mugs of all sorts. Her grandchildren all fondly remember "Grandma Camp", the traditional family Christmas games, the "game" closet, and how she encouraged and supported their interests as they grew. Family birthdays were special because family could order their "menu" and Joan would fix it. She loved her sweets and believed the purpose of dinner was to get to dessert. Once her family was grown, she and George made memorable trips to Hawaii, Alaska, Israel, western U.S. national parks, and Mackinac Island, MI.
Joan was a very faithful and spiritual woman. She and George ran and taught Sunday School for many years and were very active at Union Congregational Church in Rockville. Later, they were active members of the First Congregational Church of Vernon and currently are members of Wapping Community Church in South Windsor.
In addition to her husband, George, Joan is survived by her son, Allen F. Apel and his wife, Jayne, of East Hartford; her daughter, Cheryl Veilleux of Lyndonville, VT; her four grandchildren: Andrew Apel and his wife, Caitlin, of Northborough, MA; Emily (Apel) Lin and her husband, Peter, of Melbourne, FL; Yvonne (Veilleux) Deady and her husband, Joe, of Ware, MA; and Kayla Veilleux and her husband, Quintin Tomasi, of Lyndonville, VT; three cherished great-grandchildren, Ty Lin, and Ethan and James Apel; her sister, Janet (Dresser) Belber and her husband, Jerry, of Brimfield, MA; her sisters-in-law Sandra (Apel) Finley and Charmaine (Apel) Hancock; as well as a host of nieces, nephews, and their families. Joan was predeceased by her parents; her son, Donald M. Apel; her sister, Grace Billings and brother-in-law, Edward Billings; her son-in-law, Laurent Veilleux; and her sister-in-law, Betty Lou (Apel) Smith.
Funeral services for Joan will be held privately. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to The Connecticut Audubon Society, 314 Unquowa Road, Fairfield, CT 06824 or to Wapping Community Church, 1790 Ellington Road, South Windsor, CT 06074. Ladd-Turkington & Carmon Funeral Home, in Vernon, are in care of her arrangements. To leave an online message of condolence for her family, please visit www.carmonfuneralhome.com.