Joan McCafferty Little

JOAN McCAFFERTY LITTLE
MADISON - Joan McCafferty Little, age 78, died of a stroke after a long battle with dementia on Monday, September 24, 2007, at Covenant Oaks, the Memory Care Facility at Oakwood Retirement Village in Madison, WI, where she had been cared for since April, 2006. Joan was a woman of boundless energy and great com-passion. She lived life with generosity and joy. Her principal vocation was to be the best mother she could be to her five children: Deborah (and Bill) Cohn, of Madison, WI; Cynthia, who died in 1993; Alice (and Jean) Grevet, of Paris, France; Dan (and Linda) Anderson-Little, of St. Louis, MO; and Benjamin, of Phoenix, AZ. She had seven grand-children: Nathaniel and Abbey Cohn; Catherine and Jeremy Grevet; Daniel, Jacob and Leah Anderson-Little.
Joan, the only child of Ross and Frances McCafferty, was born July 5, 1929, in Butler, PA, where she grew up among a multitude of McCafferty cousins and close to the family church. She earned her Bachelor degree at Allegheny College in 1951 and a Master of Religious Education degree at McCormick Theological Seminary in 1953. That same year she married G. Daniel Little, also a student at McCormick Seminary. In 1981 she earned a Master of Social Work degree from Fordham University. In addition to being a homemaker, she worked as a church educator and pastoral counselor. Wherever her husband's work took them, she found ways to serve others, always with a spirit of hospitality. Joan's and Dan's life together took them to London, England; Pitts-burgh, PA; Ridgewood, NJ; Ithaca, NY; Chicago, IL; Prairie Village, KS; Minneapolis, MN; and Madison, WI. In all of these places her first commitment outside the home was to the Presbyterian Church (USA), in which she was also an ordained elder. From Ithaca on, she was an active participant in P.E.O. Joan was a consummate people-person. An overarching theme of her life was an insistence that everyone be included, especially those most likely to be left out. At her table and in her home, she welcomed everyone, including unconventional guests. In her work as an educator, she focused attention on those with special needs. In her counseling practice, she devoted extra care to those who were most likely to be missed. Joan had a special love of drama-in-worship, houseplants, health food, and tap-dancing. A Memorial Service will be held at Covenant Presbyterian Church, 326 S. Segoe Rd., Madison, WI 53705 (608-233-6297) on Saturday, September 29, 2007, at 1:30 PM. A reception will follow in the church narthex. There will be no prior visiting hours. Burial will be at the Northside Cemetery in Butler, PA at 3 PM on Tuesday, October 2, 2007. A service will be held at Butler's Thompson-Miller Funeral Home following the burial at 3:45 PM. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts (designated to help people with special needs) may be made to any of the following: West Side Presbyterian Church of Ridgewood, NJ; First Presbyterian Church of Ithaca, NY; McCormick Theological Seminary of Chicago; Village Pres-byterian Church of Prairie Village, KS; Westminster Presbyterian Church of Minneapolis, MN; Covenant Presby-terian Church of Madison, WI; Hospice-Care Foundation, Inc., of Madison, WI; Covenant Oaks Memory Care at Oakwood Retirement Village of Madison, WI.
Cress Funeral & Cremation Service, 3610 Speedway Road, Madison, WI 53705. Ph: 608.238.3434