Joan Frances (Hamilton) Sexton, 74

Joan Frances (Hamilton) Sexton, 74, passed peacefully into the arms of her Lord and Savior on Thursday, Sept. 9, in Sandpoint.

Joan’s Lakeside Memorial Service will be held Friday, Sept. 17 at 1 p.m. at 1100 S. Division Ave., her daughter’s home. Mary Koski, minister and friend of the family will officiate.

Joan’s parents, Floyd and Grace Hamilton, moved from Summersville, Mo., to Sandpoint, Idaho, in the 1930s. Her father worked at Farragut, the Forest Service, Schweitzer and construction.

Joan was born Sept. 27, 1935, in Sandpoint. She spent her early years growing up on an island at the mouth of the Clarks Fork River. She spent happy hours as a child fishing with her Dad and her Uncle Oscar. The only access to the island was by boat. She rode the school bus to Sandpoint to attend elementary school. She lived in Sandpoint while attending high school.

She met David Hull, and they married young and had two children. Her husband worked construction so the jobs moved them to many places. They lived in Washington, Oregon, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, California and even Hawaii for short stints. But they always returned to Sandpoint. It was always home. The couple divorced when their children were in high school.

Joan, who had been a homemaker most of her life, decided to embark on a vocation of adventure and travel. She became a long-haul truck driver. At the time, there were not many women in the profession and she considered it a personal challenge. She attended the driver’s training school, graduated, and spent several years delivering goods across the United States for large trucking companies. She loved being on the road and always had a lot of stories to tell. She enjoyed seeing the country one mile at a time.

Joan retired in 1983 due to health reasons. She was also an accomplished seamstress and now there were grandchildren to sew for and spoil. She was a good cook and loved to have people in her home, especially the holidays. She loved Christmas and the presents were lavish and plentiful.

Joan loved creative things, and she tried her hand at everything, painting, crafts, floral arranging, and music. Throughout her life, she wrote stories and poems, and later on, full size novels, which she pursued getting published.

She taught herself to bead and made exquisite jewelry which she gave as gifts to family members, friends and also sold through shops. She had a network of pen pals that received numerous cards and letters of encouragement.

The family and friends of Joan knew that her life was about people and relationships. Even though her earthly body was constrained and she was unable to venture much outside her home, her passion was to stay connected to the people she loved. We will miss her here, but we rejoice that she has reconnected with her loved ones in heaven. We look forward to that day ourselves.

Joan is survived by her two children, daughter Roxanne (Mark) Fuller, and son Gary Hull four grandchildren, Erica (Taylor) Johnson, Stephanie (Rob) Brasefield, Kitty Hull and Nichole Dixon. She also has six great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her infant sister at birth; her father, Floyd; and her mother, Grace Hamilton.

The family wishes to thank the staff at Bonner General, Dr. Abrams, Hospice and  Coffelts Funeral Service for their compassion and care in our time of sorrow.