Obituary of Joanne Barbara Menton

Joanne Barbara Menton passed away on October 9th, 2018 near her retirement home in Milton, DE after a lengthy and courageous battle against ovarian cancer. She was 69.

She was born in Detroit Michigan on March 27th, 1949, the eldest of three to Paul and Maxine Taylor. Her family moved east and settled in Wayne, New Jersey in 1960. She attended the public schools there and graduated from Wayne Valley High School in 1967. Joanne extended her education by attending Hope College on the western shoreline of Michigan before returning east in 1970 to embark on her working career. She was hired by Prudential Insurance in 1972. It was at Prudential that she met her future love and husband, Mark Menton. They were married on November 6th, 1982 and soon after purchased a home in Verona, New Jersey adjacent to the beautiful town park. Three years later they welcomed in their first and only child, Katharine Taylor Menton on December 22nd, 1985. Soon after Joanne left Prudential to help raise her daughter “Katie”.

Joanne was a dedicated mother and wife, always putting her family’s interest first. She was an unassuming person with a gentle heart and a kind soul. In fact a common description applied by many in her circles was that “Joanne is so sweet”. She was always ready to help with Katie’s schooling and supported Mark in his interests outside of work. She was an active member of the First Presbyterian Church of Verona and served as Secretary of the Brookdale Ave School SCA. In 1996, as Katie matured and with college and retirement looming, Joanne re-entered the full-time work force as the Billing Manager in the large physician’s group, Vanguard Medical. She remained there for 20 years before retiring in 2016. Around this time, Mark and Joanne began construction on their retirement home in Milton, DE.

Shortly after moving from Verona and before completely settling in to their new Delaware abode, Joanne’s struggles with ovarian cancer began. Due to their recent move and a lack of an established network of local medical care, she and Mark traveled north to Memorial Sloan Kettering in the early months of 2017 to begin her treatment. With Mark’s unwavering support and dedication, they began what would become a weekly endeavor of 4-hour car rides north for tests and chemotherapy in an effort to secure her the best possible care. Her immediate goal was to attend her daughter’s wedding later that spring. On June 10th, 2017, she gleefully watched as Mark walked Katie down the aisle to marry her sweetheart Jeremy Hart. Then, nearly one year later on August 16th 2018, Joanne was blessed with the arrival of her first granddaughter, Teagan Taylor Hart. As her health slowly failed, the Hart family traveled from Guelph, Canada in September for Joanne to meet and hold her precious grandchild, Teagan. Her life was now complete.

Joanne is survived by her husband Mark Menton, her daughter Katie Hart, her granddaughter Teagan Hart and her brothers, Todd and Dana Taylor. Arrangements are being coordinated through the Moriarty Funeral Home. Visitation is at the funeral home on Monday, October 15th from 3-7 PM. A service of remembrance will be held at the First Presbyterian Church of Verona on Tuesday, October 16th at 11:30 AM. Internment will immediately follow at the Immaculate Conception Cemetery in Montclair. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance (https://ocrahope.org/).