Born and raised on Staten Island, New York on September, 21st 1948, Joan and her younger siblings—Ronnie and Diane— were born to Ronald and Edna Ellison.

After having two children of her own—Jill and Steven—Joan went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts from the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan. Drawing and painting remained an essential part of her life in the decades that followed. Watercolor and acrylic were her mediums of choice, while her topics were places she loved best. Her favorite subjects included intimate interior scenes of her various apartments in Brooklyn—especially in Park Slope. Exterior snow scenes of Park Slope and summer scenes in the Catskills were additional favorites—particularly Colgate Lake, where we spent many summers together. 

Joan led the formation of the Park Slope Artists Group and a major art show featuring her own work along with dozens of independent Brooklyn artists. Among the many attendees was Sen. Chuck Schumer, Minority Speaker of the House. She sold many of her works there and continued to host it for a number of years. 

After earning her Master’s degree from Yeshiva University, Joan entered her second career as a psychotherapist, and with the assistance of a scholarship, she started her own practice. Eventually, Joan leased a beautiful office space on Park Slope West Avenue and did a complete renovation. She herself utilized one of the resulting four office spaces for her own practice, and rented out the other three offices to other psychotherapists. She practiced for many years while managing the office, as well as her own billing and scheduling. During that time, Joan gained the trust of the local PS 321 faculty and was blessed to be able to counsel many of their students who she loved dearly. 

Joan’s additional interests were movies and screenwriting. She formed her own publishing company—Everybody’s Write—and published The Screenwriters Initial Draft—a workbook for writing screenplays—along with Watch Movies Learn Screenwriting—a tutorial on writing screenplays.

During her free time, Joan also studied Latin Dancing with many top Latin Dance teachers in New York City. She became extremely proficient and hosted a Latin Dance event complete with instruction at her beloved Starbucks on Seventh Avenue in Park Slope. 

Joan was Full of Life, Full of Love, and Full of Laughter, and I truly miss her.

Her Husband,

John