Joan Elizabeth Gast

Joan Elizabeth Gast, 85, passed peacefully to be with the Lord on Sunday, April 10, 2016, following a month-long battle with various health complications leading to increased congestive heart failure. Surrounded by the love of her family, in an environment of absolute compassion provided by Hospice of Mount Joy, Joanie did not suffer.

A native Lancastrian born September 1930, she was the daughter of the late Henry K. Mearig and Elizabeth Danz Mearig. She is preceded in death by her beloved husband of 56 years, the late Samuel A. Gast of New Holland. Sammy was her best friend, her partner through everything and the love of her life in the truest sense of those words. Joanie had one sibling, her beloved brother, Henry K. Mearig, Jr. of Manheim who passed away last year.

Joanie is survived by three children, Jeffrey A. Gast, husband of Debra A. Moore Gast, Lititz PA, Gwendolyn A. Gast of Lancaster and youngest son, Douglas A. Gast, husband of Emma Concepcion Cabahug Gast, Manheim.

She is also survived by eight grandchildren: Casey A. Harsh, Raleigh, NC Christopher M. Gast and David A. Gast, Lititz, Chase A. Duncan, husband of Kelly Eckman Duncan, Cary, NC, Sarah E. Gast, Lebanon, Serena M., Dante A., and Linnea Joy Gast, Lake Geneva, WI, and three great-grandchildren, Alyssa Michelle Gast, Lititz, Henry Chase Duncan and Jackson Chase Duncan, Cary, NC.

In 1948, at the age of 17, Joan graduated from JP McCaskey High School and immediately began working at Armstrong Cork Company. In September of that same year, Joan married her brother’s good friend, WWII Navy veteran Samuel A. Gast. While her husband was in management at Hamilton Watch for 22 years, Joanie raised their 3 children and worked for an architectural firm part-time. When Hamilton Watch Company underwent a merger and acquisition, Sam and Joan decided it was time to be their own boss. In 1969, they purchased a beer distributorship in New Holland which they operated together for eight years.

Over time, her husband’s life-long fascination for antique, classic and sports cars evolved into a full time family business. In 1985, they erected a car museum in Strasburg, PA and founded Gast Classic Motorcars Ltd, along with their oldest son, Jeffrey. They became well known nationally and abroad, often setting world record sale prices at high end auctions. Sam’s concentrated field of expertise was his vast knowledge of automobiles, seeking out and acquiring the best of the best, while Joanie was the glue that held it all together. In other words, while Sam and both sons got to play with cars, Joanie stayed behind the scenes and ran every other aspect of the business. Record keeping, accounting, payroll, complete control of gift shop purchasing, vendor relationships, inventory, pricing structures, merchandizing, special order requests, marketing, all banking, Joanie handled it all, and she did it well. AND, she did it all manually, hand-written, no computer in sight. She had a fantastic mind for business, possessed extraordinary time-management and organizational skills as well as the ability to maintain focus, never allowing herself to deviate from the structured plan she put in place for herself. Although there was no time remaining for socializing or cultivating friendships, Joanie’s devotion to her family was paramount and her deep Christian faith was always at the heart of every decision she made.

As her children, we can tell you that we adored her and she cherished her family. She gave us each a childhood as close to perfection as God will allow on earth. She was the heart and soul of our family, the center of our universe and she taught us to love unconditionally. Joanie didn’t have a selfish bone in her body and when our father suffered a stroke leaving him 75% paralyzed and no longer able to speak, she dropped everything and dedicated herself to his comfort and care 24/7 in their New Holland home, until God called him home seven years later.

Joanie was a long time member of Trinity Lutheran Church in New Holland. She loved gardening and nature, was extremely artistic and creative, cherished being with her grandchildren and in later years, loved watching televised tennis tournaments with her brother, Henry. Also, the friendships she had discovered and treasured in recent years as a resident of the Long Community at Highland made her feel safe and loved.

Funeral services will be held on Saturday, April 16, 2016 at the Groff-High Funeral Home, 145 W. Main St., New Holland, with Douglas A. Gast officiating. Interment will be in the Trinity Lutheran Cemetery, New Holland. The family will receive friends at the Funeral Home on Saturday from 9:30 – 10:30 a.m. In lieu of flowers contributions may be made to Hospice & Community Care, PO Box 4125, Lancaster, PA 17604. To send the family online condolences visit us at www.groffeckenroth.com.