Cover photo for Joan Nancy McGuire's Obituary
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1934 Joan 2022

Joan Nancy McGuire

April 18, 1934 — March 1, 2022

Joan Nancy McGuire (Nee Francetich), 87, of Missoula, Montana, passed away on Tuesday, March 1, 2022, at The Springs of Missoula.

Joan was born April 18, 1943 in Centerville, Montana, one of three children. She grew up in the Centerville area and graduated from Centerville High School. She worked in Great Falls before relocating for a period of time to Buena Park, California. She worked for an aeronautics company while her husband attended UCLA. Upon her return to Montana, Joan worked for Blue Cross of Montana, where she worked hard as a claims manager for over 20 years before her retirement.

Joan was blessed to be the mother of four children: Dan, Karla, Ardis and Sharilyn, but her true joy in life was when her children blessed her with grandchildren. Joan took great pride spending time with her eight grandchildren. She especially enjoyed watching their sporting matches and teaching them to cook her treasured recipes, her caramel cinnamon rolls were a favorite. Joan always greeted her children and grandchildren with a smile and hug. Her loving spirit carried over to her children and grandchildren’s friends as they often referred to her as “mom” and “Grandma Joan” Joan also loved to dote on all the pets of the family, some would say she was a “doggie whisperer”.

When she had free time, she travelled the world, gardened, read, and cooked. She was an avid sports fan, and you could often find her cheering on the U of M Grizzlies, Gonzaga Bulldogs, Seattle Mariners, and the Seattle Sounders. She loved watching sporting events and attending the games in person. In addition, Joan was the biggest fan of her grandchildren’s sporting events. She was a frequent attendee at her grandchildren’s basketball, baseball, gymnastics, track and soccer games, as well as band and orchestra concerts.

Joan was preceded in death by her parents, Joseph “Irish” and Josephine Francetich; her son Daniel McGuire; and her brothers Alan and Ron Francetich.

She is survived by her daughters: Karla (Mike) McGuire Neiman of Missoula, Montana, Ardis (Sean) McGuire Knibbs of Redmond, Washington, and Sharilyn (Glen) Campbell of Minneapolis, Minnesota; eight grandchildren, her true gems: Saegen, Ross, Trent and Talia Neiman, Maya Campbell, Olivia Knibbs, Ambria Campbell, and Bronson Knibbs; a sister-in-law Barb Francetich; and an Aunt Bonnie Francetich Eller.

A graveside service will be held at 9:30 a.m., Saturday, April 23, 2022 at the Sand Coulee Cemetery in Tracy, Montana with a celebration of life immediately following at the VFW Banquet Room 4123 10th Ave South Great Falls, MT 59405

Memorials are suggested in Joan’s name to Hestia Foundation. A special thanks to Hestia Hospice for their compassionate care of Joan.
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Joan Nancy McGuire, please visit our flower store.

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