Joan Patricia (Matthews) Canty

Joan Patricia Canty was born in Bena, MN on March 17, 1932. She was born to Lillian Isabell Matthews. She passed away on January 9th 2025 at Tamerack Court Assisted Living Facility in Bemidji, MN where she resided with our Father up until his death on April 26, 2024.  They were married to for 75 years.

Joan’s greatest joy was having her family around! She had 8 children. Rick, Brenda, Dana, LuAnn (Berge), Robin, Dean, Carla (Broste) and Paula.

She was blessed with many grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren.

She wore many hats in her lifetime.
Her first of many jobs was at the Head start program in Bena, MN. She was sometimes a teachers’ aid, janitor and bus driver. Where she was needed, she served. She loved the kids and they loved her.

Joan also worked for the Cass Lake Elementary School. She was a hall monitor and a teachers’ assistant. She again loved working with the kids. Years later her on many occasions kids that she tutored would recognize her and approach her. They were always happy to see her and vis versa. Mother also worked in many capacities with the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Programs that were offered through the school system. 

                                                                                           
Every August our parents would harvest wild rice. As hard as that job was, they had many fun and interesting stories to share. This was something that was passed on to their children. They were in their early 80’s when they decided it was time to end their many years of hard work and their dedication to the art.

In 1981 our parents relocated to their new property 8 miles south of Cass Lake. They bought an old schoolhouse/church and renovated it into a home of 42 years. It truly was their little slice of heaven. Joan thrived with taking care of her yard, flowers and watching the birds every morning! One of Dad and Mom’s hobbies were bird watching from their kitchen table.  

Mom and Dad were known for dancing. They belonged to the Eagles Club for many years and were known as, The Dancers.” Dinner and dancing at the Eagles. They rarely missed a Friday night.

They also attended many functions when they were invited by the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe. Mother was proud of her native side and loved to attend any functions they hosted from X-mas parties to fund raisers.  They especially attended anything to do with dancing or food.   One occasion they won a dancing contest that was held in Walker at the Casino.

One of Joan’s greatest talents were in the kitchen. She was a fabulous cook. She was known to make so many wonderful dishes. Her soups, hot dishes, homemade bread wild game and the lists goes on.       Her talent in the kitchen was definitely appreciated in our family and she taught all of her children a thing or two in the kitchen.

The Canty family would like to thank each and every one of you for being here and celebrating our mother’s life.  

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