Joan Elizabeth Carter

She was born on September 14, 1952, in San Francisco, California, the fourth of the eight children of Jay Montgomery and Roberta Lee Carter. The family relocated to Fresno, California when Joan was two, after her father completed law school. Joan attended both parochial and public schools there, graduating from Fresno High School and Fresno City College.

She attended California State University, San Francisco and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Radio and Television Broadcasting. Joan lived in San Francisco for 34 years and worked as a technical writer for Oracle and then Salesforce. Around 2013, she returned to Fresno to help care for her mother. She bought a roomy house that became the social center for her entire family, especially around the holidays. She worked remotely for Salesforce until her retirement in 2023.

Joan was a renaissance woman with interests so varied it was hard to keep up with them. She loved improvisational comedy, took and taught classes, and performed with an improv group in San Francisco. She wrote eloquently in both prose and poetry and was a talented artist and craftswoman.

Joan had a passion for collecting and often said that once she had two of anything, a new collection had started. She assembled large collections of African masks, Asian artifacts, cookware, and sewing and crafting supplies. Entering her home in Fresno, it was easy to feel like you’d entered a curiosity museum. She was a very generous person; if you expressed admiration for anything in her home, she was likely to gift it to you on the spot. We had to learn to admire with our eyes.

Joan was quick-witted, loved to laugh and to make others laugh. Years ago, when one of her teenage sisters was lovesick and brooding, Joan came in and, after hearing her sister’s story of woe, Joan grabbed a peanut butter sandwich that was atop a table and began to spread it on her arms, rapturously declaring, “I just LOVE peanut butter!” Tears turned to laughter.

Joan was a member of a book club for more than 30 years. The group’s interests were varied, a mix of fiction and non-fiction. One member said of Joan, “Whatever we were reading, Joan always had just the right quote or cultural reference to add to the discussion. She’s one of the most culturally literate people I’ve ever met.”

Joan was preceded in death by her parents, Monty and Roberta Carter, her youngest brother, James Anthony Carter, and her brother-in-law, James D. Howell, Jr. She is survived by her siblings Michael Carter and his wife Mary Jane, Stephen Carter and his wife Janet, Trisha Brown and her husband Joel, Mary Howell, Jane Carter-Lum, and Susan Carter, as well as many beloved nieces, nephews, great nieces, and great nephews. She leaves behind scores of dear relatives and friends as well.

Family and Joan’s friends are invited to attend a Celebration of Life at The Painted Table Event Center, 5080 North Blackstone Avenue on Saturday, June 29th from 1:30 to 4:30 pm. Refreshments and a light lunch will be provided.