ZaDean Hoffman

(From Knell Mortuary)

Joyce ZaDean Hoffman died on October 19, 2016 Oak Pointe, Carthage, Missouri after a lengthy illness. She was born on December 4, 1934, in Newton County, Missouri to Warren Johnson and Opal Lauener Johnson.

ZaDean grew up in the Redings Mill area of Newton County on the family farm, and graduated from Joplin High School in 1951. She started working for Empire District, Joplin, after graduation. In the summer of 1953, as she and her cousin were touring downtown Joplin in her new Plymouth convertible, ZaDean met a young military policeman, William (Bill) Hoffman of Chicago, Illinois, as he was rounding up wayward soldiers from Camp Crowder. Bill and ZaDean were married on March 7, 1954 in Joplin. They moved to Carthage in 1959.

ZaDean was busy raising her children as a stay-at-home mom but returned to work in 1970 as a bookkeeper at Miller Chrysler Plymouth, Carthage. She worked at General Irrigation in Carthage before joining the administration team at McCune-Brooks Hospital. She retired from McCune Brooks in 1999 after 25 years of service. She also assisted her husband Bill with the RV sales and service business he established prior to his retirement. After ZaDean retired, she and Bill had time to travel the world. Some of her favorite trips were those shared with her niece, Pat Grider Rodgers and her husband, Jack. ZaDean was a loving and devoted wife to Bill and a loving, conscientious mother to her four children. She especially loved being Nammaw and Grandma to her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She loved animals, including the pet rooster she cared for as a child, and took in several orphaned dogs and kittens over the years. She was an excellent cook and known for her chocolate chip cookies that were often sent to her children when they lived in other states. Her spaghetti and meatballs became a staple of all important family gatherings at the home. She also enjoyed bowling on the McCune Brooks bowling team for many years.

ZaDean was preceded in death by her husband, Bill Hoffman, her parents, her sister Ursula Grider, and her brother Lee Johnson. She is survived by two sons and two daughters, Bill Hoffman and partner Maria Straus, Michele Sexton and husband Dean, David Hoffman and wife Sheila, and Julie Hoffman and wife Alicia; six grandchildren, Matthew Lonardo, Nicole Hoffman, Rachael Hoffman, Deandra Sexton, Luci Dickinson-Hoffman and Sally Dickinson-Hoffman; five great-grandchildren, Aria and Arlo Lonardo and Allison, Aimee and Nicholas Pitts; one brother, William Johnson; and many nieces and nephews.

Visitation will be held on Sunday, October 23rd from 2:00 to 3:00 pm at Knell Mortuary, Carthage, followed by a memorial service at the funeral home. Burial will take place on Monday, October 24th at 9:00 am, Park Cemetery, Carthage.

In lieu of flowers, please send a donation to Smile Train or the Foundation for Neurological Diseases. Online condolences may be expressed through www.knellmortuary.com. Arrangements are under the direction and personal care of Knell Mortuary.