Joanne K. Gildea

Joanne K. Gildea passed away peacefully in her sleep on May 22, 2026. She was 93. Joanne was born in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania on January 7, 1933, to Gertrude and Norman S. Keith. The Keith family home was a happy one, with loving parents, a doting older sister, numerous dogs, and a barn for Joanne’s horses on the property.

A graduate of Hollidaysburg high School, Joanne went on to attend Dickinson College from which she graduated in 1953. She was a member of Zeta Tau Alpha sorority and seemed to have majored in friendship and fun, themes which reappeared throughout Joanne’s life.

On June 11, 1955, Joanne and Thomas Gildea were married at her family home. While Joanne had harbored a freshman crush on her senior classmate, fate brought them together after high school when Joanne’s mother hired Tom to paint their house. Who was truly responsible for the ensuing romance was always a topic for debate, but the result was a long and happy marriage that lasted until Tom’s death in 2020.

When Joanne and Tom moved to Meadville in 1956, they expected it to be a short stay while Tom managed a construction project. Instead, they put down roots and became lifelong members of the community, raising a family and building a network of wonderful friends. Joanne was active in The Meadville Garden Club and the Antique Study Club for many years. With children growing up she took a job as a tipstaff for the Crawford County Courts, a job she enjoyed for nearly twenty years and for which she was perfectly suited. No one could make jurors feel more welcome and at ease than Joanne with her warm smile and friendly charm. While she was certainly less of a natural on the golf course, Joanne nevertheless enjoyed being a member of the Country Club of Meadville for more than 50 years, the golf being secondary to the people and the parties.

Antiques were a true passion for Joanne, and she was both an avid collector and a dealer, in business with her dear friend, Dot Kennedy. The two of them loved nothing better than to load up a big truck on a Friday afternoon, drive to a racetrack in Ohio, and sleep in said truck in anticipation of the antiques show the following day.

In their later years, Joanne and Tom moved full-time to Florida, first to the Plantation Golf & Country Club in Venice, and later to The Fountains in Sarasota. In both those places Joanne was immediately beloved by her neighbors and friends, just as she was everywhere she traveled in life.

Joanne was a uniquely positive person, who saw every glass as not just half-full, but full-full. For her there was no need to don rose-colored glasses. She made the choice every single day to see the best in each situation and person. Her kind nature drew people to her, her loyalty to friends and family kept them close, and her sense of fun brought them immense joy and so many happy memories.

Joanne is survived by her greatest fans, her three children Mark (Beth) Gildea of Meadville and Venice, Florida, Roger (Jackie) Gildea of Meadville, Elizabeth Gildea Logie of Charleston, South Carolina, her sister-in-law Judy Gildea (Bob) McLaughlin of Washington, DC, and multiple generations of the Gildea Clan who loved Joanne as one of their own. She was pre-deceased by her husband, her parents, and her sister, Mary Jane Keith.

Seven grandchildren loved “Grandma” with all their hearts - Jennifer (DJ) Craven, Caitlin (Travis) Sub, Erin Gildea, Brian Gildea, Jackson (Kiley) Logie, Ryan Logie, and Emerson Logie. They will make certain her memory lives on in turn in the hearts of her ten (and still counting) great-grandchildren. Joanne’s is a memory, and a life, very much worth honoring.

Donations in Joanne’s honor can be made to the Jeanne Gildea Scholarship Fund via Venmo @bob-gildea with “Jeanne Gildea Scholarship” in the subject (donation receipts issued by Hollidaysburg Area High School). The family will host a Celebration of Life in the fall and will provide details as available.

Arrangements are under the direction of STEPHEN P. MIZNER FUNERAL HOME & CREMATION SERVICES, INC. 404 CHESTNUT STREET, MEADVILLE, PA 16335

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