Joan Therese (Zeipelt) Bednar

Joan Therese Bednar, 90, of Shawnee, Kansas died peacefully October 8, 2022, surrounded by her family.

Mass of Christian Burial will be Saturday, October 22, 2022, at 10:00 a.m. at St. Joseph Catholic Church with a visitation starting at 9:00 a.m., burial in St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery.

Joan was preceded in death by her husband, Marion “Ace” Bednar; daughter, Mary Jo Bednar; grandchild, Baby Curtis; parents, Henry and Minnette: sister, Delores King and brother Reverend Vincent Zeipelt, CSSR.

Survivors include her children, Henry “Hank” Bednar, his wife Marilyn and their daughter Caroline (Harrison), sons Jacob, Ryan (Allison); Joan “Dolly” Curtis, her husband Pete and their son, Andrew; Vince “Boo” Bednar, Cyndi and their sons, Christian (Rachel), Cam, Kemper and Nicholas. And many much-loved nieces and nephews.

Joan was born on March 1, 1932, to Henry and Minnette (Kemmer) Zeipelt in Kansas City, Missouri. Joan grew up in the shadows of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Redemptorist Catholic Church where the foundations of faith and family were instilled. She attended Redemptorist Grade School and High School. She earned her degree in education from Donnelly College with a Master’s from Avila University. Joan and Ace first met in their early twenties at a dance with friends. They continued to see each other over the next ten years here and there before seriously dating for two years and Ace proposed to Joan in front of the Our Lady of Perpetual Help statue in Redemptorist Catholic Church. They were married on June 27, 1964, by Joan’s brother, Fr. Vincent Zeipelt at Redemptorist Church. They started their family right away having four children in five years. Faith and family were everything.

They raised their children in the catholic faith and sacrificed to send them to catholic grade school and high school. Life was filled with many fun family trips, lots of times learning history along the way. There were lots of sports practices, games, bowling tournaments and travel. They never missed a thing! As the kids grew up, she loved having a home where everybody’s friends could come hangout and she enjoyed making her famous cookies, brownies, and cupcakes for them.

Her love for her family grew by leaps and bounds as her grandchildren arrived. She loved spending time with them and attending their events and sports. Her favorite was Grandparent’s Day at the grade school and taking them to Wendy’s after for lunch every year. She was so proud of them and loved them so very much!

Professionally, Joan taught social studies/history for twenty years as an elementary school educator in the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas with most of those years at St. Agnes Grade School in Roeland Park, KS.

Following years as a teacher, Joan worked for the US government in the United States Treasury and retired from the United States Postal Service after sixteen years to care for and spend time with the love of her life…Ace. After Ace’s passing, to fill her time, she worked as a cashier at Deal’s/Dollar Tree until permanently retiring at the age of 84. Whether students, co-workers, or customers, we have heard from so many of them over the years of the lasting impact she had on their lives.

Memorial contributions may be made to St. Joseph Catholic School, 11505 Johnson Dr, Shawnee, KS 66203 and/or St. James Academy Catholic High School; 24505 Prairie Star Pkwy, Lenexa, KS 66227. https://secure.lglforms.com/form_engine/s/n4iF9S0n8sytPTbIJ3jtbA