Joann I. Miller

Joann grew up in Miami, Florida, where she graduated from Miami Jackson Senior High School in 1957. Following high school, she completed the three-year nursing program at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, Florida, and then entered the U.S. Army as a registered nurse. After first being stationed at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, she transferred to Ft. Meade, Maryland, where she met her beloved husband, John Elwin Miller, Jr., “Jack,” a registered pharmacist in the U.S. Army. She attained the rank of 1st Lieutenant during her term of service. Joann and Jack were married on November 4, 1961.

Joann, Jack, and their daughter Cheryl moved to Toms River, NJ, in 1966. Because they had moved so often while living in Maryland, and Joann was tired of moving, Joann told Jack upon arriving in Toms River, “You can move again if you want to, but the dogs, Cheryl, and I are staying here!” Joann loved Toms River and the Jersey Shore because they fulfilled her desire to live near the water. Joann and Jack welcomed their son John into the family in 1969.

During her nursing career, Joann worked many places including Community Memorial Hospital, Jersey Shore University Medical Center, and CentraState Medical Center. Her first love was the emergency department, but she also worked in endoscopy, home health, and most other areas of nursing care. While nursing and taking care of her family, Joann attended Georgian Court College and earned a B.A in Sociology in 1979.

After Jack’s death in 1981, Joann worked hard to maintain a stable home for her family. She trusted greatly in God and often told people that she walked by faith and not by sight. She loved the Lord, and His light shone through her in the love she showed to other people. She had a heart of gold, and she loved unconditionally as she listened to, encouraged, and shared with her many friends, neighbors, and family members. Joann was also a very strong-willed woman. Her dearest friends and family members will confirm that she was as “stubborn as a mule” if she believed that something was right, and she would stick by that conviction.

After retiring in 2006, Joann worked briefly as a substitute nurse at Toms River High School South. Because she loved to minister to people, Joann became a chaplain with the International Fellowship of Chaplains. Joann loved art and wrote grants for the Ocean County Artists’ Guild where she volunteered for several years. Art, nature, friends, children, and the beach brought Joann much joy. She greatly loved her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren, and she prayed for them daily.

In addition to her parents, Joann was preceded in death by her husband and her three younger brothers, James Ivey, Lamar Ivey, and Ralph Ivey. She is survived by daughter Cheryl Ann Jackson (Tim), son John Elwin Miller III (Hope), and daughter Melissa Ann Maiorano (Tom); grandchildren Amanda Marron (David), Rachel Jackson, Lilah Grace Miller, Marcellus Jack Miller, Sophia Maiorano, and Olivia Diaz (Scott); great grandchildren Robert Marron and Katherine Marron; and several cousins, nieces, and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions are appreciated and may be made in Joann’s honor to the Popcorn Park Zoo, P.O. Box 43, Forked River, NJ 08731-0043.

Visitation with Joann’s family will be Tuesday, July 13, 2021, from 2:00 – 4:00 pm and 7:00 – 9:00 pm at Anderson & Campbell Funeral Home, 703 Main Street, Toms River, NJ. The memorial service will be Wednesday, July 14, 2021, at 11:00 am at First Assembly of God Church, 800 Bay Avenue, Toms River, NJ.

Link to Joann's 7/14/2021 Memorial Service: https://tinyurl.com/Joann-I-Miller-Memorial