Joan C Koonmen

Joan-Marie Chevalier Koonmen passed away on Saturday, June 10, 2023 at Mayo Hospital in La Crosse, WI. Born on October 23, 1931, in River Rouge MI, Joan was the first child of Helen Schulhauser Chevalier and Oda Chevalier. She spent a happy childhood on Grosse Ile, MI graduating from HS in 1948 at age16. She graduated from Marygrove College, Detroit, in 1952, at age 20, with a BA in Art.

After graduation she worked as a topographical draftsman for the US Corps of Engineers, drawing maps. She also illustrated ads for Hudson’s in Detroit.

While riding the city bus from Grosse Ile to college, a handsome young man going to his job in Detroit caught her eye. She wished he would sit next to her and one day he did! Joan and Edward “Ned” Koonmen were married on Sept 9, 1952. Not an outdoors person, she gamely designed and sewed the tent they used on their canoe trip honeymoon.

His engineering career took them to Utica, NY, back to Detroit and then to the Trane Company in La Crosse, WI in 1957. By this time, there were 2 children and 1 more on the way. Looking for an outlet, Joan remembered an AAUW representative who visited Marygrove, encouraging the graduates to join. She joined the La Crosse branch, finding a community that she remained active in up until her death. She started the Art study group and formed The Picture Ladies—whose members taught elementary school kids about art. She was the first chairperson of the AAUW Art Fair on the Green. She used her artistic skills to design the posters for the group’s theater productions in the 1960’s, and sewed outfits for the fashion show fundraiser.

By 1961, there were 5 children; Joan needed more outlets! She joined Town and Country Garden club, enjoying flower arranging and community gardening. A lifelong bridge player, she joined a bridge club. She was a Den Mother for Cub Scouts. 1969 brought a move to Dayton, OH, and the addition of the last child. With a 1970 move to Bowling Green, KY, Joan found numerous outlets to volunteer as well as time to be a Welcome Wagon hostess.

In 1973, the family moved to Faribault MN. With most of the children old enough to fend for themselves, Joan blossomed. She became involved in the art and civic activities: founding the Faribault Invitational Art Fair, the Faribault Festivals Inc, was a charter member of the Faribault Heritage Preservation Commission and founding member of the Community Arts Builders. She served on the library board and the District One Hospital board.

She enjoyed being the hospital gift shop manager and buyer. She joined the Faribault AAUW branch, serving in various board positions. As the State AAUW newsletter editor, she won recognition and awards for its excellence.

Spare time? Well, that was for serving on the school board, helping Girl Scout arts badge work, giving lectures at the HS on art history, a math and reading tutor at the kids’ schools and a Pink Lady volunteer at the bloodmobile. She became an election judge and worked the polls. Joan always enjoyed developing a project and seeing it through to completion.

As the kids graduated and went to college, Joan began a new career; hosting a weekly cooking hints show on KDHL radio station. She and her friend, Gail, regaled their audience with interviews, tips and banter outside of cooking. It’s no wonder that when Dad asked where Mom was, the answer was that she was “flitting” to all her activities!

This led to the perfect car license plate “FLITS” and she became known around town as Flits.

Joan found time for herself too. Her hobbies included glass etching, bridge club, knitting, sewing, bowling, gardening, calligraphy, reading and camping.

In 1994, Joan and Ned moved to Roswell, NM to retire. She was active in the Newcomer’s Club, bowling, bridge and camping. Realizing they needed to be back by family as they aged, they made a final move to Sparta, WI in 2013.

Back where they started as a young family, Joan again joined the La Crosse AAUW branch and cherished the friendships she made there.

Joan is survived by her 6 children: Mark (Jamie) Koonmen of Fenton, MI; Erica Koonmen (Jef Jerde) of Sparta, WI; Matt (Teryl) Koonmen of Naples, FL; David Koonmen (Jessie Altringer) of Medina, MN; elise Koonmen of Minneapolis, MN and eve (Mike) Knoll of Victoria, MN. She is also survived by 7 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, Ned; her parents; her brother, Ronald Chevalier and grandson Kevin Koonmen.

Our Mom inspired us in many ways:

Mark: Things I learned from my mother’s example: kindness, tolerance and respect for all and unconditional love for family.

Erica: Mom taught me to be creative; by using my mind to figure things out and by using my hands to make things. I developed a love for crossword puzzles by sitting with her at night, working on them. I learned how to sew and do many types of handicrafts with her guidance. We had epic double solitaire games late at night, both being night owls. As hard as she tried, I never did learn to cook though.

Matt: Mother instilled in us a sense of fair play and optimism. She taught us to look for the good in people, and in life. To appreciate the things around us and the people in our lives. I will forever miss her and the wisdom she shared with us. 

Dave: Mom had a talent for being creative and organizing things- be it people, projects, or events. I believe that’s why she was always being sought after for community projects. Whenever I was asked “What does your mom do?” my response was “She’s a professional volunteer.”  I had some pretty kick-ass ‘themed’ birthday parties due to her skills.  She was also an incredibly great cook, which led to my love of cooking. I’m going to miss her terribly.

Elise: Thinking of all the words to describe mom, “gracious” comes to mind immediately. She truly epitomized all of its meanings- kind, considerate, warmhearted, tasteful, and especially, “possessing a generousness of spirit”. Engaging, thoughtful, polite, caring - these are a few of her qualities I try to exemplify in her honor. Her creative spirit showed in her lifelong curiosity and love of learning new things. While I definitely did not inherit her artistic talents in the fine arts, I did get her love of cooking and I will forever treasure the afternoons we spent experimenting with recipes.

Eve: Mom had a gift for recognizing and nurturing talents and aptitudes in people, in the most subtle way. Her curiosity and endless desire to keep learning and exploring inspired my love of nature, gardening, cooking, reading, and creating.  She cultivated the sense that anything was possible. Some of our best times were spent shopping, finding just the right thing for someone (even if that was us). Kind, selfless, and classic, she’s irreplaceable and forever missed.

Following her wishes, Joan will be cremated and her ashes interred alongside Ned in Roswell, NM. The family plans a celebration of life later this year. Donations to AAUW, Salvation Army or your public library would be a great tribute.

The family would like to thank the wonderful staff at Liberty Village in Tomah for the warm welcome and attention they gave her during her short stay. The nurses and staff on the 7th floor of Mayo La Crosse provided much comfort in her final days; thank you.

At the end of a life, there are 2 questions that matter: did you love and were you loved? By that measure, Joan lived an exceptionally full life.

Online condolences may be offered at www.schanhoferfh.com.

Lanham-Schanhofer Funeral Home and Cremation, Sparta, is assisting the family with arrangements.

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