Joan Bernice Rorick, 75, of VanDenburgh Point Road, Gloversville left this earth on Tuesday, September 28, 2021, to be with her heavenly family. She succumbed to pneumonia after a courageous five-year battle with AML.
Joan was born in Albany on July 9, 1946, a daughter of the late John and Bernice Miller Yarmchuk and was a 1964 graduate of Berne Knox Westerlo High School. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from SUNY at Cobleskill and was a member of Phi Theta Kappa and Orange Key. She later attended SUNY at Albany.
Joan was a teacher at the Schenectady Head Start for two years and after her marriage, she taught at the Harrington Park Nursery School in NJ until 1978, when she became a domestic engineer.
Joan and her husband Ted purchased a vacant lot on the Great Sacandaga Lake in 1977 and began to build their dream home, which became their permanent residence in 2008.
Mrs. Rorick was a member of the Mayfield Central Presbyterian Church, the worship committee, and also a choir member.
She was an avid animal lover and was known to spoil her beloved thirteen-year-old Black Lab, Iago. Joan was everyone’s greatest cheerleader and never missed a sporting event that featured one of her family members, especially her grandchildren. She often said, “My grandchildren’s games are what’s keeping me alive”. Family meant everything to Joan. Sunday dinners at her house were not to be missed and were always something to look forward to.
Survivors include her husband, Theodore L. “Teddy” Rorick, whom she married on June 21, 1969; three children, Katrina (Richard) Ruberti, and Dustin and Tyler Rorick; two grandchildren, Trevor and Arianna Ruberti; a sister, Faye (Howard) Cornwell; two sisters-in-law, Diane Menefee and Debbie McGaughan; and several nieces, nephews, and cousins.
Her family will receive relatives and friends on Sunday from 1 – 3 pm at the Mayfield Presbyterian Church, 22 North Main Street, Mayfield. A funeral service will follow at the church at 3 pm with Rev. Bonnie Orth, officiating. Burial will be in the Mayfield Rural Union Cemetery at the convenience of the family. Memorial contributions may be made to Mayfield Presbyterian Church or the Fulton County Regional Animal Shelter, in care of the funeral home. Arrangements are by the Robert M. Halgas Funeral Home, Inc. 111 County Highway 106, Johnstown, NY 12095.
To express online condolences, please visit www.halgasfuneralhome.com.
