Martha Joan Ziglar, 89, of Collinsville, Virginia, died peacefully in her sleep Tuesday morning, Sept. 15, with family nearby. She was born Oct. 24, 1936, in Fieldale, Virginia, the second of three children and the only daughter of Albert and Beulah Graham.

Joan grew up quietly and simply in a modest home in rural southern Virginia. She found enjoyment in playing with her brothers and teaching herself to play the piano. Later in life, Joan occasionally served as a substitute pianist for two different area churches. Her Christian faith remained a quiet constant throughout her life, with particular affection for the Psalms and the hymns that had helped form her.

Joan married James Gilmer Ziglar and spent 57 years as his wife. Early in their marriage, James' service in the United States Air Force briefly carried them to Panama City, Florida, where their only child, Janice, was born. Within a few years, they returned home to southern Virginia, settling in Collinsville, where they raised their daughter. Joan was faithful in church attendance and support and was a loyal and devoted wife.

Joan worked at Bassett-Walker Knitting Mill for many years until retiring in February 1997. She took her job seriously and did her best at difficult piecework for many of those years. Her life outside work during that time was filled with her love for flowers and preparing her incredible fried chicken and delicious cakes. For Joan, familiarity was no obstacle to enjoyment. Her life was marked by simple pleasures, one of her favorites being an occasional chocolate malt milkshake. Above all, Joan loved seeing her family. She watched her daughter become a mother and grandmother herself and she lived to know six great-grandchildren.

Joan's contentment with the familiar was matched by a remarkable independent streak. Almost as soon as she retired, she found herself caring for her ailing mother. Soon after, she also cared for her husband during his final illness. Following James' death, she lived another 14 years in the place she had called home since the early 1960s.

Joan did not need to travel far or acquire much to be content. She lived quietly and peacefully, watching the old Westerns she had grown to love over the years, as well as visiting with her family and enjoying phone calls from friends.

When James died in 2012, some spoke of their confidence that they would someday be reunited in heaven. Joan carried that same faith through the 14 years that followed. As her health declined and she entered hospice care, Janice and her husband, Dean, remained nearby. Until the end, Joan regularly returned to the Scriptures and listened to hymns, finding comfort in the faith that had accompanied her since childhood.

Joan had also been looking forward to a reunion in late October of this year. With her 90th birthday just weeks away, she anticipated celebrating it with her family members in North Carolina. Now her family takes comfort in knowing that their Mom, Grandma and Gigi is celebrating with James and other family members and friends who went before her.

Joan was preceded in death by her husband, James Gilmer Ziglar; her parents, Albert and Beulah Graham; and her brothers, Eugene Graham and Robert Graham. She is survived by her daughter, Janice Ziglar Walker, and son-in-law, Dean Walker, of Yadkinville, N.C.; granddaughter Candace Walker Spencer and her husband, Joshua, of Sherwood, Ark.; grandson Matthew Walker and his wife, Natalie, of Winston-Salem, N.C.; and six great-grandchildren, Jonah, Odin, Liam, Carson, Astrid and Austin.

A small family service will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, Sept. 25, at Roselawn Chapel and Funeral Home in Martinsville, Virginia. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that friends send donations to the Howard and Joan Woltz Hospice Home, 945 Zephyr Road, Dobson, North Carolina 27017.

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