Joan Karff was a wife for 57 years, a mother to three daughters, and a grandmother of seven. She ran a successful dance company, Joan Karff’s New Dance Group, for 25 years. Always passionate about helping others, and always curious about the world around her, Joan was known for her sense of humor, class, and intelligence.

For 15 years, Joan carefully chose 10 women annually to participate in Women on the Way Up, her innovative program at Lamar High School that educated and motivated scores of young women through culture, the arts, and discussion of current events. Before her death in 2016, Joan personally mentored 150 students, laid the groundwork for a book and personally chose her successor to lead Women on the Way Up into the future.