Joanna Marie Gorwitz

Wow! What a life! The glass was always half full for Joanna! She may have left us because of an insidious disease, but she is leaving with a laugh and a smile. Joanna always had a smile, for everyone. That’s what you should remember about Joanna, those smiles along with heartfelt greetings to everyone—she was always making new friends. And her hugs—her embraces were strong and unreserved. If you had her as a friend, you had a friend for life. And many of those friends became as close and enduring as family. She had a wonderful life. She got to travel to see the world. She saw the most beautiful parts of the world, like the Amalfi coast in Italy. Joanna lived overseas, including Austria, Belgium, and her beloved Italy. She also saw the not so beautiful parts of the world, when she deployed with the military and other “friends”. What mattered were the people she met, the friends she made all over the world, her kindness, compassion for others, and the memories all who knew her will carry with them. She spoke Italian, Neapolitan, German, and a few other languages she picked up along the way so that she could say hello and make friends everywhere and anywhere. And the dogs. Every dog she met loved her and she felt the same. She certainly spoke their language! Dogs recognized her for her loving, kind, and assured ways with them. She took care of the unsure, shy, and scared dogs at rescue events so much so that she was called a dog whisperer. Joanna took great pride in being handed a nervous and skittish puppy and turning that puppy into a confident and loving companion for a family. Rescue dogs were the ones rescuing the people who adopted them, and she saw to it that every dog could have a forever family. She was absolutely devoted to her soulmate and partner Kenneth David Keiser for 38 years. What a party there will be when Joanna sees Ken again in heaven. Joanna Gorwitz is survived by her partner Kenneth David Keiser. Her brother David Kall Gorwitz and wife Ann Rhodes Gorwitz of Yorktown, Virgina; Nephew Brian David Gorwitz of Montana; Niece Ann Mixon Miller and husband Noah Zachary Miller of Huntsville, Alabama; Nephew ETN3 Henry Kall Mixon of Charleston, South Carolina and her adopted “sister” Susan Pee Mixon, of Kosciusko, MS. She treasured and loved with all her heart and soul her family and dearest partner that she leaves behind. She cherishes all her friends that became her family of the heart, “famiglia del cuore”. There will not be a memorial service held at this time.

Joanna Marie Gorwitz

March 30, 1962 - April 4, 2022