Service:
Thursday, August 27, 2020
11:30 a.m.
Joanne L. Hatton, age 89, former resident of Willard, Ohio, passed away on Monday, August 24, 2020 at the Seneca House in Tiffin, Ohio, where she has lived for the past 5 years. She was born on March 13, 1931 in Clarington, Ohio to the late Rev. John and Josephine (Jonescu) Herion, and lived in Greenville and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Duluth, Minnesota; Hickory, North Carolina and Fort Myers and Lake Placid, Florida. While growing up in the parsonage of Grace United Methodist Church in Willard, as her father was the minister, Joanne began a deep commitment to serving the Lord in the Methodist Church. With each move, she and her husband, Gene, committed to being involved in the church, and chose to become lay representatives in the Methodist Church, while serving in Hickory, at Lake Junaluska, NC. Upon returning to Willard about 10 years ago, she became an active member of First United Methodist Church in Willard.
Joanne was known, by all who loved her, as a very creative and spontaneous person! She was a gourmet cook, established a catering business, was an excellent water-colorist, loved to sew and knit, and was an avid reader. She was willing to try anything new, and had a very informed and current sense of fashion. She and her husband, Gene, planted beautiful gardens wherever they lived, and loved to visit gardens when they traveled. Joanne was an experienced traveler, and has journeyed to many countries on five continents, and most states in the U.S. Given that her father emigrated from Germany in the 1920's, she has enjoyed traveling with her German cousins, and was so happy to be in Germany in November, 1991, when the Berlin Wall came down.
She is survived by two sons, Dennis Hatton of Norwalk and David (Paola Olaya) Hatton of Media, PA; three daughters, Karen (Gordon) Davidson of Mill Spring, NC, Vicki (David) Leeds of Horse Shoe, NC and Barbara (Bill) Franke of Farmington, MN; 8 grandchildren, Drew Hatton, Geoff Hatton, Ross Hatton, Katie Brooks, Matthew Davidson, Joshua Davidson, Paloma Freundt, Alondra Freundt, Heather Klein and Alex Klun; 11 great grandchildren, Noah, Amber, Drew, Alaina, Josh, Hailey, Miles, Stella, William, Theodore and Mithril, and two sisters, Susan (Bill) Klein of Macedonia, Ohio and Diane Richter of Houston, TX.
She is preceded in death by her beloved husband, Eugene F. Hatton who passed away September 14, 2013; parents, Rev. John and Josephine (Jonescu) Herion; one sister, Ruth (Tom) Secor and sister-in-law, Marilyn (Rhea) Rodgers.
Joanne has also enjoyed a dear, late in life friendship with Gene Fatzinger, while living at Seneca House in Tiffin. They have enjoyed perch dinners together, jigsaw puzzles, challenging Bingo games and weekend pancake breakfasts with his family, who embraced our mother, as if she were their own. We are grateful for Gene, as he has stood by our mother’s side, through every one of her last days, holding her hand.
A graveside service will be held on Thursday, August 27, 2020 at 11:30 a.m. at Maple Grove Cemetery in New Haven, Ohio with Rev. Douglas P. DeVos officiating. Memorial contributions may be made online to Heartlandhospicefund.org, or given to the funeral home, for Heartland Hospice of Fremont, Ohio. These donations will go directly toward grants for hospice clients who are struggling with health care expenses. Online condolences may be made to the family at www.secorfuneralhomes.com.