Joan Bankbar

Joan Dankbar, 87, of Clear Lake, died Friday, March 29, 2024, at the Oakwood Care Center in Clear Lake.

A Funeral Mass will be held on Thursday, April 4, at 10:30 a.m., at St. Patrick Catholic Church, 1001 9th Ave. S., Clear Lake, with Reverend Josh Link officiating.  Visitation will take place one hour prior to the service.  Burial will take place following the service at the Clear Lake Cemetery.

Memorials may be directed to St. Patrick Catholic Church and St. Croix Hospice. 

Joan was born on April 30, 1936, in Britt, to Harold and Helen (Malone) Smith, she was the fourth of nine children. Joan went on to graduate from Clear Lake High School in 1954. She would go on to become a nurse’s aid at the St. Joseph’s Hospital, now known as MercyOne North Iowa Medical Center, for 34 years. 

On June 7, 1958, Joan and Robert Dankbar were united in marriage at Holy Family Catholic Church in Mason City. Together they would help at the Senior Center in Clear Lake, go bowling and travel on cruises and around the U.S. Joan and Bob were also avid members of the St. Patrick Catholic Church.

Joan would often be seen working in her garden, tending to her flowers and would bake pies for her friends, family and those at Apple Valley Assisted Living. 

Those left to cherish Joan’s memory are her siblings, Mildred (Ray) Lowenberg, Harvey (Susan) Smith, Stanley (Nancy) Smith and Kathleen Godden; along with other relatives and friends.

Joan is preceded in death by her parents, Harold and Helen Smith; husband, Robert; siblings, Charlotte Smith, Dorothy Brand and Linda Smith, Robert Smith; and brother-in-law, Tom Godden.

Ward Van Slyke Colonial Chapel, Clear Lake, is in charge of arrangements.