July 28, 1945 - January 7, 2020
Joan R. Fryc went home to be with Jesus on Tuesday, January 7th, surrounded by her loving family. She was a long-time resident of Yardville and Groveville, NJ,
Joan was an only living child to Frank and Helen Reuter (she had a younger sister Jane who passed away in 1950 hours after she was born). She went to Yardville Heights Elementary School and was a 1963 graduate of Hamilton High School West.
She worked a few jobs before she was hired for the Personnel Office at the Hamilton Township municipal building in 1980. While working there she made many friends and retired in 2007, as the Personnel Director, a title she proudly spoke of.
She was a fun and loving mother to David, Andrea and Alicia. She devoted her time with each of them. They were never without anything and she was always right beside them during their life and their life adventures. She created many fond, fun, and sweet memories with each of her children as individuals and together.
She was a member of her children’s PTA & was very involved in their lives growing up. She enjoyed going down the shore, boat rides in their boat with her husband and the father of her children, Cliff Rutherford who she referred to as Butch. Many of her children's friends got to enjoy beach vacations and weekends with the family, as well. Everyone in her Groveville neighborhood knew her well. The kids in the neighborhood always enjoyed fun pool parties in the summer and a fully done up Haunted House on Halloween. All the kids in Groveville knew the Rutherford home.
She protected her first born, David, in each part of his life, from early on as a small baby to his teen years. When David was a teenager, she took the blame for an accident in our dad's truck to keep him out of trouble. She loved his friends growing up as her own. She was so proud that he became an electrician and always talked of him and boasted of his electrician title in the same sentence.
Her baby of the three, Alicia, could do no wrong either. They both loved the outdoors and gardens.
Anyone who knows her could agree that she was always on the go. She enjoyed beach trips, flea markets, vacations, dancing, shopping and yard work... she loved to be outside weeding and could do this all day long, as it was calming to her. Giving gifts was her love language. Joan was the life of the party. She was always dancing and singing and loved to be photographed, as well as taking her own pictures, which she has many albums to show for. She loved throwing parties & and each one was always unique and loads of fun. You could even be taken out of your comfort zone with the games she put together for all to enjoy.
She became a grandmom at a young age, in 1989, to Alyssa who was the apple of her eye, as she got to spend lots of time with her as the first grandchild. She wanted to be called Mom-Mom, which is a name she wore proudly. She went on to be blessed with 7 other grandchildren, David Jr, Lindsey, Rianna, Brianna, Kevin Jr and Salvatore, also Matthew Rivera, and 7 great grandchildren, Jayla, Amya, Gianna, Mia, Nyaliz, Hunter & Malakai who she loved very much. She loved all of her grandkids the same. Each was unique to her. She thought of each and every one of them and tried to make them feel special, as if they were the only one. She was always excited to see any one of them!!! She was always present at every first day of school, school events, holiday and activity, whether it was big or small. If she knew about something… she was there!! We look back and wonder how she made it to each one of their first days of school, all at different locations, but she did. Her grandchildren were her world.
She also made her son-in-laws, Kevin Wright and Robert Manuguerra feel as if they were her own sons and they loved her just the same.
She lived in Groveville with her family throughout the years. After her marriage, with her children's father ended, she was later remarried to Joe Fryc and eventually moved down the shore in Mystic Island with a second home in New Gretna. She loved both homes and her time in them. The house in Mystic Island was her dream. She loved the animals at her New Gretna house. Until the day she died, she loved feeding all the animals outside, and many came to the house knowing this. Her favorites were the birds, the squirrels and the bunnies (and deer while in New Gretna).
She was predeceased by her grandson Salvatore (2006), her daughter Alicia (2013), her son-in-law Robert (2014), her husband Joe (2016) and her grandson David Jr (2019).
She moved back to be closer to her children and grandchildren in December of 2017. Where the bonds of her love grew stronger.
Her last vacation in 2019 was in LBI. She felt like it was home there, and she didn’t want to leave. She woke up each day that week so happy, enjoying every minute of it. We stayed on the beach as long as we could each day. Her favorite memory she spoke of was watching the meteor shower at night on the beach.
She began attending The Bridge Church with her daughter and granddaughter. She wrote notes her first day on a connect card saying, "Went to church with my daughter, Andrea. I didn't want to leave. Everyone I met was so nice to me” (she never handed it in, as it was found this after she passed). She loved going to church. It was the highlight of her week. She served at the church as much as she could. She loved the ladies connect groups, especially when it was her daughter’s house, she kept asking when Andrea would have another one at her house. She absolutely LOVED the worship music. She would clap, dance and raise her hands. Her favorite song was "Who You Say I Am" (she called the song by her favorite words in it "Child of God," she later got a t-shirt saying this. And a sign above her bed.) She took notes on every sermon and even though she had a journal for this, she chose to write on the church papers that were on our seats. She took the pen home each time and now has a hefty collection of Bridge pens.
She was baptized in this time period at The Bridge Church in May of 2019. She was so excited.
She felt at home in the church and with the people there whom we call family. She barely missed a Sunday, but if she did, you could tell by how she was. She truly wanted to go to church every day if she could. She loved Jesus and tried to live out her life for him. This gives us peace, as we know where she is now.
She also has a favorite country song by Darius Rucker, "For the First Time".
Joan was a loving and caring woman. She always thought of others before herself. She left a lasting impression on everyone she came in contact with. To know her was an honor. She was a once in a lifetime kind of woman. We love hearing stories from others about our mom. Each of the stories have common words: fun, happy, loving, giving, etc. She truly looked out for her family from day one until the last day of her life. She will be deeply missed.
Relative and friends may attend a visitation on Monday, January 13, 2020, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Bridge Church (formerly Hamilton Square Baptist Church) 3752 Nottingham Way, Hamilton Square, NJ 08690. Services will be held 1 p.m. at the Church. Burial will follow in Crosswicks Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers donations may be made in Joan’s memory to the Bridge Church c/o 3752 Nottingham Way, Hamilton Square, NJ 08690
There will be no services held at the memorial home.
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