ANN ARBOR , Mich. — Joanna WS Courteau,

81, formerly of Elkins, Ark. (most recently living in Ann Arbor, Mich.) died July 5, 2020, at home in Ann Arbor, after a brief illness. She was born in 1939, in Lwów, Poland, to Ryszard Wojtowicz and Lidia (Bukstejn) Wojtowicz during World War II.

Her family were war refugees and eventually settled in Brazil. She emigrated to the U.S. in 1956 to attend the University of Minnesota, where she met Richard (Dick) Courteau in a Spanish class. They married in 1959, completed graduate studies at University of Wisconsin, and then moved to Virginia to teach Spanish at small colleges, while also having two children there. They moved to Arkansas in 1967 to teach at the University of Arkansas, and purchased the Tom Dunaway place in the Pinnacle Community (Madison County) near Elkins. Although not a farm girl, Joanna enjoyed learning about gardening and preserving from the neighbors, picking blackberries and making cobbler and jam in between grading papers.

Joanna taught Spanish at University of Arkansas until 1971, while being active in progressive political causes. She and Dick co-organized and led the first Earth Day rally at the U of A, harnessing a team of horses to pull a wagon to the Fayetteville campus to use as a stage for speakers. They then took the team and wagon around their neighborhood to clean up roadside trash, and for years afterward they sponsored annual neighborhood cleanups.

Joanna was a wonderful cook and a warm entertainer. She hosted small dinners and big parties for her students as well as a large community of academics, international visitors and political activists. She loved nothing more than gathering a group and sharing food, and it was not uncommon for students and or members of the community who were at loose ends to come for a party and stay for a night, a week, or a month or two, until they were back on their feet.

In 1971, Joanna left University of Arkansas for faculty position at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, where she was active in promoting international and diversity studies and multicultural understanding, and was instrumental in adding Portuguese to the curriculum, as well as teaching Spanish. However, she continued to return to Arkansas each summer, and together the family operated Rimrock Ranch School of Horsemanship, teaching horse skills to young people during summer camps from 1973-76. Although Joanna and Dick divorced in 1976, they continued to own their Ozark farm jointly, and she maintained a cordial relationship with Dick’s second family and visited periodically. She dearly hoped to find a way to preserve the natural beauty, biodiversity and cultural history of the property.

After her divorce, Joanna married Charles Gratto, a professor of agricultural economics at Iowa State, in 1977. She retired from Iowa State University in 2007 after teaching for more than 40 years. In retirement, she and Charlie became interested in screenwriting, and they worked on a number of screenplays together. After Charlie’s death, Joanna moved to Ann Arbor, Mich., to be close to her two grandchildren. She dedicated her “retirement” to being a devoted grandmother, attending every school event, concert and play that the grandkids were involved in, as well volunteering for many and diverse social justice causes. She also grew interested in storytelling, and one of her stories is featured in NPR’s Moth podcast.

Her friends describe her as a scholar, a storyteller, an actress, an activist, a migrant, a wife, a mother, a universal grandmother, a seeker, and most of all, an example of radical, unconditional love and generosity. She will be missed by her family and large community of friends, and her former husband remembers her fondly as the best friend of his life.

Two memorial services will be held to celebrate Joanna’s life at a later time when it is safe to gather for food and fellowship — one in Ann Arbor, Mich., and one in Ames, Iowa. To learn about either memorial, register at https:// bit.ly/JoannasMemorial.

Memorial contributions can be made in her name to The OMNI Center for Peace, Justice, and Ecology (3274 N. Lee Ave., Fayetteville, Ark., 72703) or to Friends United Meeting (Communications Department, 101 Quaker Hill Drive, Richmond, Ind., 47374).

Arrangements were entrusted to Nie Family Funeral Home, 3767 W. Liberty Road, Ann Arbor, Mich., 48103. For more information please visit www.niefuneralhomes.com.