Obituary of Joan Bell

Bell, Joan Phyllis, passed away at Royal University Hospital in Saskatoon during the morning hours of Wednesday June 6, 2018 surrounded by her family. Joan is survived by her special friend and partner in life Harold, her three sons, Scott (Rob), Drew (Shanna) and Roger (Tamara); grandson Jakob, granddaughter Lauren, brother Tim (Isabel), sisters-in-law Nancy and Marcie and numerous nephews and nieces. She was predeceased by her husband Thomas in 2003, her parents John Edward and Mary Hazel Coates, her brothers Max, Walter and Doug (Merle) and sisters Helen (Lloyd), Eileen (Earle) and Laura (Alec). 
Joan was raised in a family of eight children on a farm east of Leask, Saskatchewan. On completion of grade XII she attended Teachers College in Saskatoon. She and her late husband Tom taught many years in Prince Albert where they raised their three sons. They spent many joyous times at their Emma Lake cabin and the Leask farm both of which have remained in and are enjoyed by the family to the present day. During her years in Prince Albert, Joan enjoyed travelling with her family. Together they experienced many sights and cultures from across Canada, Europe, the United States and the Caribbean.  
Joan attained a BEd Degree, A PGD in Early Childhood Education and a MEd in Exceptionality Education at the University of Saskatchewan. She was proud to say she taught students from Kindergarten to grade twelve. During her career as a teacher, she received accolades and awards because of her love of children and concern for students with special needs. She was proud to be involved with the development of the Early Childhood Education Council, the Council for Exceptional Children and the North Central Reading Council. In 1986 she was honoured with the Joe Duffy Memorial Award by the Saskatchewan English Teachers’ Association. 
Joan loved writing poetry and stories throughout her life. She especially enjoyed reciting poems for young children and recalling poems learned during her public and high-school days. She always credited her parents for fostering this love of poetry. In 2015 Joan published The Power of Poetry, a collection of poems written by Joan and her family, others passed down from her parents and favorites she had acquired along the way. 
As a graduate of the University of Saskatchewan Joan served on the Board of Governors and the Senate. Her interest in supporting health advocacy led to her support of Medicare in 1962 and she and her husband Tom helped establish the Prince Albert Co-operative Heath Centre. They Joined the Saskatoon Community clinic when they moved to Saskatoon in 1996.
In 2006 a relationship blossomed between Joan and Harold Chapman. Harold, who Joan referred to as her “special friend”, shared a common passion for social justice, politics and the co-operative movement. Together they played a key role as members of the Station 20 West fundraising committee, volunteered in many capacities with the Saskatoon Community Clinic and worked on numerous NDP election campaigns.  They also enjoyed travelling, highlights of which included a Mediterranean cruise and regular trips to Costa Rica to visit youngest brother Tim, his wife Isabel and family. 
Joan is well known in the community for her social activism and compassion for those less fortunate. She was a loud and proud member of the Raging Grannies with whom she sang at many social protest events. Joan’s social activism was inspired by a conviction that grass roots community mobilization would achieve a more fair and just society. In January of this year Joan received the Saskatoon Community Clinic’s Outstanding Volunteer Contribution Award for her work on the clinic’s Seniors Advisory Council, Silver Threads Seniors group, the Member Services Committee and for her life long involvement in the Co-operative Community Clinic movement.
Above all else, Joan valued and loved her family. Her three boys, their families, Tom and later Harold were the centre of Joan’s world. She cherished her time together with them and there was always room in the calendar for another family function. Annual gatherings of the Bell and Coates clans over Christmas, the May long weekend at the farm and labour day at the cabin were the most anticipated and enjoyed events of the year. 
Joan was a joyous person who loved life, living each moment to its fullest. She had an indominable spirit and boundless energy for the causes she championed and people she held dear. A loving person who spread the joy of living, Joan will be greatly missed and forever remembered by her family and friends. 
The Memorial Service will be held at McClure United Church in Saskatoon on Friday June 15th, 2018 at 1:30 p.m. In lieu of flowers the family asks you make a donation in Joan’s name to the Saskatoon Community Clinic Foundation or Station 20 West. 
 

Joan Bell Receives
Outstanding Volunteer Contribution Award
Congratulations to Joan Bell who received the Community Health Services Outstanding Volunteer Contribution Award at the Association’s Semi-Annual meeting on January 17th.
Joan Bell was raised on a farm near Leask, Saskatchewan in a family of eight children. She became a teacher and she cared deeply for her students, particularly those with special needs. During her career as a teacher, she received accolades and awards because of her love of children and concern for students with special needs. Joan has a lifelong interest in writing and is a published poet. As a graduate of the University of Saskatchewan, she served on the Board of Governors and the Senate. Her interest in supporting health advocacy led to her support of Medicate in 1962 and she and her husband Tom helped establish the Prince Albert Co-operative Health Centre. They joined the Saskatoon Community clinic when they moved to Saskatoon in 1996.
Joan is well known in the community for her social activism and compassion for those less fortunate. Joan has been active in many local organizations and political causes, including Station 20 West and the Raging Grannies. Joan and her good friend Harold Chapman often volunteer during Clinic Membership days.
An activist over the years, she advocated for people with common needs such as in the field of health where she supported the establishment of Medicare in 1962 and the formation of the Community Clinic Co-operative in Prince Albert. Upon moving to Saskatoon with her husband in 1996, Joan began supporting the Saskatoon Community Clinic.
Joan Bell is presently a member of the Seniors Advisory Council and a member of the Happy Gang/Silver Threads Seniors group. She has also served on the Member Services Committee and was a membership volunteer for many years during Membership Days. Joan regularly attends annual and semi-annual meetings and is well known in the community for her social activism and as an acclaimed author.
Joan lives by her belief that the co-operative vision is best exemplified by member engagement and involvement, and, she has most ably demonstrated that in all of her volunteer work.  Her active support, of Medicare and of the Co-operative Community Clinics over the years, makes Joan Bell a worthy and outstanding candidate for this Award.