Joanne Wendte

Joanne Wendte, a longtime resident of Palmyra, passed away on the morning of January 10, 2026, at the age of 81. Her family gathered to celebrate her life and say farewell to her on Monday, January 12, 2026.

Joanne will be remembered for the kindness and support she gave to family and friends, and for her humor. A lifelong reader, Joanne shared her love of reading with her community through many years of volunteer service at the Palmyra Public Library. In recognition of this work, Joanne was inducted into the Lebanon County Women’s Hall of Fame in 2024. This was an honor that made her family very proud and that she accepted to encourage others to support their local libraries.

Joanne, a native Philadelphian, was born to Beatrice and Joseph J. Martin on April 30, 1944. Years later, on a blind date to an Elvis Presley movie, Joanne met her future husband, Frederick Wendte. In 1966, Joanne and Fred married and moved to Palmyra to raise their family. Joanne earned an associate’s degree from Harrisburg Area Community College and worked in the information technology and accounting departments of several local businesses. She retired in 2009 after many years as an assistant business manager for the Northern Lebanon Senior High School in Fredericksburg, PA.

Joanne was predeceased by her parents and her younger brother, James Martin. She was deeply loved and will be dearly missed by those who survive her: her husband, Frederick Wendte III; her daughter, Debora Wendte and her husband Jonathan Johnson of East Windsor, NJ; her son, Frederick Wendte IV and his wife Maryam Afif of Stamford, CT; her sisters and brothers-in-law, Lisa and Paul Kucinskas and Suzanne and John Gomulka; her sister-in-law and brother-in-law Lynnmarie and William Harkins; her six nieces, Valeria, Meggan, Melissa, Elisa, Rebecca, and Diana; and her many grandnieces and grandnephews.

In lieu of flowers, her family asks that donations in Joanne’s memory be made to the Palmyra Public Library, online at https://palmyra.lclibs.org/give/ or by mail at 50 Landings Drive, Suite B, Annville, PA 17003.

Services will be private at the convenience of the family.

Arrangements have been entrusted to the Rothermel-Finkenbinder Funeral Home & Crematory, Inc., 25 W. Pine St., Palmyra, PA 17078. Memories and condolences may be shared at www.FinkenbinderFamily.com