Obituary of Joan Norma Mintz

Joan Norma Mintz died peacefully, surrounded by her loving family, on May 27, 2026.

Joan was born on March 12, 1929, to Harry and Sophie Scheurer in Manhattan, New York, the eldest of three children.  She attended Clinton High School in New York City and later Upsala College in East Orange, New Jersey.

In 1950, she met the love of her life, Milton (“Mickey”) Mintz. On their very first date, Joan confidently told the bartender she wanted a chocolate thick shake, a detail that instantly endeared her to Mickey and became the kind of story that explained everything about her: she knew exactly who she was and what she wanted, and she wasn’t shy about it. They would go on to share 75 years of marriage.

After a short courtship, they married and moved to Kirksville, Missouri, where Mickey attended medical school and Joan taught 2nd grade in a one-room schoolhouse. Her teaching career was short-lived as she quickly lost her job when Mickey, derelict in his duties to keep the room heated by stoking the fire (not something that the city boy ever learned), nearly set the building ablaze. They later settled in Dover, New Jersey, where Mickey, with Joan as his indispensable partner, built a family medicine practice. Joan ran the front desk, but “ran” hardly does it justice. She was the heartbeat of the operation. She had a remarkable ability to meet someone once and somehow turn them into a lifelong patient, often recruited during a casual conversation at a hair salon, nail salon, deli, or just about anywhere along Blackwell Street. 

Joan simply loved life, and life seemed to love her right back. Having lost her own mother at a young age, she developed an instinctual care for others that never left her. She had a way of making people feel seen, understood, and, very often, better than they did five minutes before they met her. She built deep and lasting connections, pouring her heart into everyone lucky enough to cross her path. She was an avid defender of the underdog and believer in fairness and justice. Joan moved through the world with style and delight, noticing beauty wherever she found it: in friendships, in travel, in art, and in an exceptional handbag. She was fabulous. 

She is survived by her devoted husband of 75 years, Mickey (98), who still adores her as much as he did on that first thick shake-filled date; her three children, Susan McMullen , Bruce Mintz (Barbara Girz), and Mitchell Mintz; her beloved dog, Sammy; six grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren, all of whom she loved fiercely—and who loved her just as much in return. Her legacy of love will live on in her family and they will think of her every time they give each other her signature hand squeeze. 

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you make a donation to the American Friends Service Committee, Immigrant Rights Program.