Joan Marie Bachand

Joan Marie Bachand passed away peacefully on Friday, April 26, 2024, with family by her side. Joan was born on December 30, 1932, to Joseph and Margaret (Sporschutz) Meyer in St. Paul, Minnesota. She attended high school at Villa Maria Academy in Frontenac, a female boarding school, graduating in the Class of 1950. As the co-founder of the Villa Maria Academy Alumnae Association and the West Coast Area Chapter, she continued her work on behalf of the Association up to recent years. Her experience at the Villa and with the Ursuline Sisters was so profound that she wore her high school ring as a uniform and outward sign of loyalty throughout her life. She grew up a tomboy and loved to fish and play basketball, but became a princess for the St. Paul Winter Carnival Royal Court. After high school, she worked at St. Thomas University, but felt the call to warmer weather. So, in 1953, she packed her belongings and headed to California, which began her life-long love of travel and adventure. While working for CAT Airlines in Burbank, CA, she lived with the Damiani family, who took her in as their own, along with the Dourisboure and Poydessus families. Joan returned to St. Paul for one year and worked at Hamline University. Her mom sold her childhood home to allow them to permanently relocate to California where her life journey began. Industriousness being one of her hallmark strengths, she began working for Nudie’s Rodeo Tailors, an osteopathic doctor, the Burbank School Board, and started her own printing business. She was a member of St. Finbar Catholic Church, and was active in their young adult group, forming lifelong friendships. It is here she met her husband, Bruce Bachand. In August of 1959, Joan and Bruce were married at St. Finbar and very quickly, their family began to grow. In 1965, they moved to Lake View Terrace, a place she called home for the next 56 years and raised their 5 children. She was a DeBell Lady Duffer golfer and always had golf clubs and her fishing pole in the trunk of her car, just in case the opportunity to do either presented itself. During this time, she worked at Our Lady of Lourdes School as the school secretary extraordinaire. She was the heartbeat of the school and parish providing leadership, administration, nursing needs, library check-out, event coordination and general morale boosting at every turn for decades. She went on to work at St. Anne’s Maternity Home for more than 21 years, first as a caregiver to the residents, and finally as the Director of Volunteers where she raised countless dollars. She could pull off a fundraiser like nobody’s business wherever she went! After retirement, she volun-worked at St. Andrew’s Abbey in Valyermo. She found such peace and contentment among the Benedictine monks and the high desert that it made the two and a half hour round trip drive worth it. After retirement, Joan so enjoyed her “Grandma Tours” wherein she would fly or drive to her children’s homes across the country for extended visits with her family. In 2021, she moved to Nashville, Tennessee to reside with Nanci and family for 2 years until she moved into a long-term care home. Perhaps Joan’s best quality was her servant heart. She would volunteer for everything and loved that she had “built-in volunteers” in her children. Many a paper was mimeographed, collated and folded, and an envelope stuffed, licked and stamped at the kitchen table! What a blessing for them to understand, at an early age, the value of helping others which left a lasting mark on their lives. Joan sat on many Boards, was active in the ACCW (Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women), coordinated retreats for the women of her parish, would help out a friend or stranger at the drop of a hat, and drive everyone’s children everywhere. Joan supported so many organizations which provided care for people throughout the world, especially Native American concerns in the Southwest and Alaska. As noted above, Joan loved an adventure and her favorite place was behind the wheel of her car. Whether it be to Vegas, Laughlin, Minnesota, Bellingham, Flagstaff, or even Connecticut, taking her children skiing, sledding or fishing, she was ready to GO! Her “hotel” was often a highway rest area and, on many occasions, her pathway just so happened to take her to the parking lot of a casino. Typically, she would be the one leaving with a full wallet…luckiest woman around. Visits to the casino in Kentucky were one of her favorite things to do with Nanci and her family while living in Nashville. Joan was a crafter and she loved to create! Decoupage and resin jewelry were her specialty, along with home sewn dresses, tumbled rocks, Reader’s Digest book angels; the list is endless. Her creative spirit is a gift she passed on to her children. For extra money, she sold everything - Shaklee, Anita Beck, Current Cards, Princess House, Tupperware, Jafra, Avon, and so much more. Definitely an entrepreneur! One of her proudest accomplishments was that she was a published poet and essayist, as well as an editor; perhaps this is how she became a walking book of grammar. Typos were always circled in red pen and often reported to the authors, verbal errors were always noted, and misleading signs were photographed to send to Jay Leno, someday. Hopefully, we haven’t missed any errors in this obituary so as to cause her concern! Joan loved her family and friends deeply, and they loved her in return. She had many lifelong friends with whom she still kept in contact 74 years after high school graduation, as well as friends from her childhood, St. Finbar days, church and school families, and her various jobs. She loved the friends she made in the religious sisters and priests encountered through Our Lady of Lourdes and St. Monica, St. Andrew’s Abbey, as well as her ACCW days, Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, and many more places. Additionally, she loved the friends of her children and spent many visits, choir practices, and holiday dinners with these extended “families”, often as the host for all the holiday orphans - friends who had no local families because they had relocated from other places, just as she had. Music was always a part of the enjoyment, whether religious or social. She loved music! More than all the accomplishments and experiences throughout Joan’s life, however, none was equal to the love and pride she found in her 5 children, 14 grandchildren, and 6 great grandchildren. She would marvel at their talents and try to attend as many events as she could in her healthier years. She loved to hear of their many accolades, whether it be in education, music, woodworking, crafting, theater performances, scouting awards, fishing stories, photography, and more. For this, her family is forever grateful for her support and investment throughout the years. Joan was preceded in death by her husband, Bruce, her parents, brothers Dick Meyer and Bill Meyer and sister-in-law Jean Meyer. She is survived by her five children: Andrea (Dea) (Tim) Meyer, Stephanie (Gene) Condon, Tammi (Dave) Dunlap, Nanci (Joe) Williams, Douglas (Renae) Bachand. Grandchildren: Kimberly Meyer, Chase Condon, Eamon Condon, Ainsley Condon, Maggi (Tom Mertens) Dunlap, Cameron (Lauren) Dunlap, Abbi (Nick) Gilliland, Scott Dunlap, Hunter Williams, Jack Williams, Emilie Williams, Austin Bachand, Delanie Bachand, Bryson Bachand. Great-Grandchildren: Weston Mata, Corey Dunlap, Mackenzie Dunlap, Bryce Dunlap, Ben Gilliland, Tiger Price. Sister-in-law Beverly Meyer. Nieces: Margaret Etta Meyer, Kathy (Meyer) Pittelko, Becky (Nona) Townsend, and Nephews: Greg Meyer, Tomm Meyer, Mike Nona, and all their families. Joan was a woman of profound faith who loved the beach and seagulls, mountains and lakes. She found poetry in just being still. Her love of humanity, blue eyes and brilliant smile will continue to shine brightly in our memories. A Memorial Mass is planned for July 1, 2024, 10:30 a.m., at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Tujunga, California. Minnesota funeral plans are pending and will be announced.

Joan Marie Bachand

December 30, 1932 - April 26, 2024