JOAN SIDELL

1924 - 2019

Joan Sidell  
On Monday, April 15, 2019, Joan Ruth Newton Sidell, of Takoma Park, MD, passed away at the age of 95. Born in Buckhorn, IL, on February 11, 1924, Joan completed high school in nearby Mount Sterling, IL, in 1942. Instead of accepting a scholarship to a local teachers college, Joan decided to become a "government girl" during the war, passing the Civil Service Exam and moving to Washington, D.C., where she found work as a secretary in the Office of Price Administration. In embarking on this great adventure at the age of 18, Joan left the farm towns of central Illinois for the nation's capital, where she pursued a rich, busy life as a working woman, wife, mother, church leader, and stalwart supporter of women's rights and civil rights.Joan met her future husband, Ralph Franklin Sidell, in Takoma Park, and the two married on September 19, 1943. They had a daughter, Judy, in 1952, and a son, Mark, in 1954. Joan Sidell continued to work in various capacities as she raised her children, serving as clerk and bookkeeper for J.F. Sidell and Son, the family's roofing business, and as the administrative assistant at the regional Ethicon sales office, from 1964 until 1984. Joan also loved to host friends and newcomers in her home and, together with Ralph, held a big Fourth of July picnic after the Takoma Park parade for almost three decades, beginning in the 1970s.Joan was extremely active in her church on the local and national levels. She was the first female elder to be appointed in the North Chevy Chase Christian Church and the first female chair of the church's board. Joan served on the Disciples of Christ Board of Church Extension. She and Ralph regularly attended the Disciples' national conference, where she voted for the ordination of LGBT members as ministers and same-gender marriage. Joan was also an ardent, lifelong Democrat. She worked in support of the ERA and reproductive rights, and marched against the wars in Vietnam and Iraq.Survivors include her daughter Judy Glynn (husband, Larry); son Mark Sidell (wife, Beth Holmgren); grandson Douglas Glynn; and granddaughter Jessye Holmgren-Sidell. Her husband Ralph died in 2003 and her sister Mary Jane (Janie) Lohr died in 2015.A memorial service for Joan Sidell will be held at North Chevy Chase Christian Church, 8814 Kensington Parkway, Chevy Chase, MD, 20815, on Saturday, May 4, 2019 at 3 p.m.In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, North Chevy Chase Christian Church, or Montgomery Hospice.