Former Bayville trustee Joan Imhof dies

Fueled by unrelenting passion and boundless energy, Joan Imhof made it her life's work to serve the community.

The Bayville residents she represented as a village trustee.

The beneficiaries of her swim-themed fundraisers.

The vast network of Long Islanders encouraged into volunteerism through an organization she founded.

All were touched by Imhof.

"She would basically do things for the general good," her husband, John, said Thursday, "and she was the person who always reached out to people in need of consolation."

Joan Imhof, of Bayville, died Monday of complications of a pancreatic tumor. She was 67.

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"Besides her physical beauty, she was just a beautiful person," John Imhof said.

Joan Imhof served as a Bayville trustee from 1972 to 1982, when she ran unsuccessfully for mayor. She worked at Newsday from 1999 to 2009 as a project manager for Future Corps, a student-driven community service project.

In 1992, she founded the Long Island Volunteer Center, a Hempstead-based resource center for community-service initiatives where she was president until her death.

Imhof was inducted into the Long Island Volunteer Hall of Fame in 2002. She also taught elementary school, directed volunteer services for Nassau County and hosted fundraisers such as Bayville's Red Cross Swim-A-Cross.

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She raised two daughters, who saw her through a brain aneurysm she suffered five years ago.

Her dedication and thoughtfulness were apparent in quiet acts: Scouring a list of children's names in order to match each with the perfect book from a Christmas book drive and bringing boxes of baking soda to a charity swim event in motherly anticipation of jellyfish stings.

Diana O'Neill, executive director of the Long Island Volunteer Center, called Imhof "an amazing catalyst for good."

"She was our point of light," O'Neill said. "She shared everything -- her wisdom, her knowledge, her love -- so that others could also grow."

Paul Fleishman, Newsday's vice president of public affairs, said Imhof leaves a legacy of volunteerism. "Joan was a community dynamo, always doing great work to help people in need," he said.

Former Bayville Mayor Victoria Siegel, who served with Imhof as a trustee, said: "I've always respected her for her love of community."

Imhof is survived by her husband; her daughters, Julie Matozzo of Bayville and Meg Callinan of Huntington; and six grandchildren.

A wake will be held at Beney Funeral Home in Syosset Friday from 2 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. A funeral Mass will be offered at St. Gertrude's Church in Bayville at 10 a.m. Saturday.