Joan Kelly Santobianco

Joan Kelly Santobianco, age 85, passed away Sunday, November 11, 2018. She was born November 28, 1932 to Joseph Kelly and Mary Gallagher in Philadelphia, PA. She was a wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, aunt, and friend. Joan loved to read, was a devoted bridge player, and enjoyed traveling. She was very generous, kind, intelligent, and had to accept responsibility at a very young age. She was born into the Great Depression and faced many headwinds in life, including taking care of her fifteen year old brother who had Polio when she was just eight years old. While raising a family of four, she faced tsunamis, earthquakes, blizzards, tornadoes, and hurricanes. Throughout her 85 years of life, she provided guidance, a watchful eye, and care to everyone. She was both beautiful on the inside and outside, and truly lived up to her nickname, Bella. Joan's hard work, good judgement, courage, support, unending love, strength, kindness, and wisdom to all will be missed and in our hearts forevermore. Joan is preceded in death by her husband, Thomas Alfred Santobianco. Survivors include her children, Thomas (Nancy) Santobianco, Joan (Terry) Branson, John Santobianco, and Mike (Jennifer Berman) Santobianco; granchildren, Jason (Amy) Santobianco, Jessica (Brandon) Karius, Jennifer (Ryan) Burrell, Michelle (Jeremy) Jenkins, Christopher (Hannah) Branson, Michael Santobianco, and Allison Santobianco; great-grandchildren, Molly Santobianco, Lincoln Santobianco, Briar Karius, Brezden Burrell, (Future) Burrell, Ava Rose Jenkins, and Dylan Everly Branson; siblings, Peggy (Ernest) Varalli and George (Marcelle) Kelly. Visitation will be held Friday, November 16, 2018 from 10:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m., with a prayer service from 11:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m., all at the Ocean Springs Chapel of Bradford-O'Keefe Funeral Home. Interment will follow at Biloxi National Cemetery.