Nellie Joan (Lamkie) Archard of Houston, TX, who always went by her middle name “Joan”, died at The Crossings in League City, TX on December 5, 2022.  Born July 12, 1931 in Indiana, PA, she was 91 years old.

The hills of western Pennsylvania, where generations of Joan’s family lived, were her home, including the towns of Indiana, Burnside, and eventually Glen Campbell.  She was a high school scholar and attended Temple University and Juniata College, graduating in 1953 with a BS degree.  She moved to Washington, D.C. and worked briefly at the National Cathedral before becoming a laboratory technician at the National Institutes of Health.  There she met and married Dr. Howell O. Archard, “Howie”, on December 14, 1961, honeymooning on the island of St. Thomas.  The two lived in Joan’s first house in Rockville, MD, then moved to Bethesda, MD in 1964 when their only child was a toddler.  Joan and her dear friend and neighbor Olga Johnson raised their daughters together and worked together at the Wesley preschool that Joan’s daughter attended.  The family moved to Birmingham, AL in 1973, where Joan especially enjoyed the company of her friend Marge Fulmer, before returning to their home in Bethesda in 1978.  In 1980, upon moving to Port Jefferson, NY, Joan enjoyed many years of friendship with Anna Mahoney, but in 2004 she decided to make Texas her permanent home near her daughter and two grandchildren.

Besides her family, Joan loved flower gardening, crossword puzzles, jigsaw puzzles, walking, and reading.  She collected crosses and angels and was fond of cats, penguins, the color pink, and especially chocolate.

She is survived by her daughter, Karen Rae Armstrong; son-in-law, Charles Holly Armstrong; granddaughter, Victoria Leigh Armstrong; grandson, Nicholas Alexander Armstrong; nephew, Richard James Lamkie; and niece, Mary Lou Mesmer Holmes.

She was preceded in death by her father, William Henry Lamkie; her mother, Mary Maude (Salsgiver) Lamkie, her brother, William James Lamkie; her sister-in-law, Ruth (Fronk) Lamkie; and her husband Howie who passed away in Texas on January 30, 2020.

Memorial donations may be made in her name to MRC The Crossings Benevolent Fund, 255 Egret Bay Blvd., League City, TX 77573.