Our beloved Wife, Mother and Grandmother, Joan Holmgren passed away peacefully on Dec. 18, 2015 at the age of 86 after a battle with lung cancer. Joan was the youngest daughter of Louis and Dorothy Hitchcock, and the sister of Barbara Harris. She was born at Hollywood Hospital, and lived her first 15 years in Los Angeles and then San Francisco at the Presidio. Joan moved to Washington D. C. and attended Mt. Vernon Seminary and College. After four years, she returned to Brentwood, CA. Joan married Horace G Holmgren, a career officer of The United States Coast Guard on March 14, 1953 at the First-Presbyterian Church in Beverly Hills, CA. She spent the next 29 years at various locations the Coast Guard assigned to her husband. These locations included Alameda CA, New London CT, Long Beach CA, Monterey CA, Boston MA, Coos Bay OR, Washington DC, Honolulu HI, and San Francisco CA. Traveling from coast to coast with her husband and two sons, John and Robert was always quite an experience for the family. In 1980, her husband retired from the Coast Guard. In retirement, Joan and her husband lived in Concord, CA from 1979 until 2001 and then moved to the Rossmoor Retirement Community in Walnut Creek, CA. In August 2015, they moved to Ventura to be closer to their children and grandchildren.
Joan is survived by Horace, her husband of 62 years, her son John, daughter-in-law Marcia, grandsons Erik & Andrew, son Robert, daughter-in-law Kathleen and grandchildren Allison, Thomas, and Sarah.
Joan was a member of the Daughters of The American Revolution, having traced her ancestors back to settling in America early in the 1600's. She was an avid reader and enjoyed mysteries more than any other form of writing. Concerning politics, Joan was a conservative and a member of the Republican Party throughout her life.
Her remains will be interned at Arlington National Cemetery in spaces reserved for her and husband, Captain Horace G. Holmgren, Ret.. In lieu of flowers, donations in Joan's memory may be made to the American Cancer Society or your favorite veterans support charity.
Arrangement are under the direction of the JOSEPH P. REARDON FUNERAL HOME & CREMATION SERVICE, 757 E. Main Street Ventura.