WEST PARIS — Joan Ward Howe of Bethel passed away Wednesday, Oct. 4, at The Ledgeview Living Center after a lengthy illness.

She was born May 4, 1935, the daughter of Willis Ward and Ethel Capen Ward. She was in the Class of 1953 at Gould Academy and received her 50-year diploma in 2003. She married Clarence “Bud” Howe and they spent 63 happy years together. Her early years were spent in Pensacola, Fla., where she worked in the First Bank & Trust accounting department. When she moved back to Maine she did similar work at the Casco Bank and Trust in Portland. When she moved back to Bethel on her family farm (Capen Hill Farm) she worked several years as a secretary at Crescent Park School for SAD 44. Joan was an active member of the Bethel United Methodist Church, life member of the Bethel Historical Society, a Cub Scout leader, a member of the Small Woodland Owners Association of Maine, a member of the Mayflower Society of Plymouth, Mass., and an early member of the Mt. Abram Ski Patrol. She enjoyed skiing and the many trips she took with her husband out West, like Jackson Hole, Mt. Hood, Vail and Whistler Blackcomb in Canada. She also enjoyed the ocean and cruising the coast of Maine with her husband on their 28-foot Bayliner.

She was well-known for jams and jellies that she sold at craft fairs and at the Capen Hill Farm roadside vegetable stand. She enjoyed raising sheep and especially the little pigs. She will be remembered for all the things she has done for the family.

She is survived by her husband of 63 years, Clarence W. “Bud” Howe; a son, Robert W. Howe and wife, Linda and their children; a son, Thomas S. Howe, wife Suzanne and their children; and four great-grandchildren.

Condolences may be shared online at www.chandlerfunerals.com.

Joan W. Howe