Oct 9, 2022

Joan Kerr Tokar, 90, passed away peacefully of natural causes, in Modesto, Calif., Wednesday, September 28, 2022, with her children close by. She was born May 5, 1932, in Oak Forest, a daughter of the late William and Martha Mildred Orndoff Kerr.

In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Joseph Peter Tokar; brothers, William Mitchell and Karl Edward Kerr; sisters, Louella Underwood and Patty Diamonte.

She is survived by her sisters, Kathie Ingram, Renee Jones; and brother, Tom Kerr; her five children, daughters Yvonne (Terry) Joyce, Royce Tokar (Brian Chesbro), and sons, Michael (Ron Owens) Tokar, David (Debbie) Tokar and Daniel Tokar; 13 grandchildren and step-grandchildren. She is also survived by eight great-grandchildren and step-great-grandchildren; and many loving cousins, nieces and nephews.

Joan grew up in Oak Forest and at the age of 18 she met Joseph Tokar. They married in 1951 and moved to El Segundo, Calif., where they raised their five children.

In 1968, the family moved to Placentia, Calif., where they lived, laughed and loved in the same house for 52 years.

Joseph and Joan moved to Modesto in 2020 to be closer to family. Joan had strong family ties with her brothers and sisters, and even though most of them lived back east, she rarely missed important family events.

In Placentia, for many years, Joan was the CYO girls coach for St. Joseph’s School’s basketball, volleyball and softball teams. As a coach she had a firm yet fair hand and often took her teams to the playoffs. Joan was also a big fan of her children’s and grandchildren’s sports teams, always cheering them on. She rarely missed an event that she was able to attend and would offer her guidance and support (sometimes to the dismay of the umpires).

In 1975, Joan switched careers and was the office administrative assistant to the editor of the Fullerton Daily News Tribune. She was proud of her job and continued to work there for many years earning the title of Mother Superior, usually for her outspokenness.

Joan and Joseph were active members of the Catholic Church. They were dedicated and proud parishioners of the Saint John Paul II Polish Center-Catholic Church in Yorba Linda, Calif. Joan frequently volunteered and baked for fundraising events such as the Dozynki Harvest Festival. She continued to have strong ties with friends in the Placentia community, even after she moved away.

Joan loved baking and entertaining, and will probably be most remembered for her traditional Christmas Eve dinners. Every year she would embrace her husband’s heritage by making a traditional Polish dish. Many friends and family members would get together a few days before Christmas to make hundreds of her legendary pierogies for the Christmas Eve dinner. The Christmas Eve dinners were one of Joan’s favorite times of the year when she would open up her house to family and friends for good company, good food and good drinks.

Joan’s loss will be felt by many, but she leaves a lasting legacy of being a great wife, mother, sister, grandmother and friend to many – with a lot of wonderful memories and stories for us all to treasure.

Visitation will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Monday, October 10, in Salas Brothers Funeral Chapel in Modesto. Rosary will be at 6 p.m.