“It would take many more lines to enumerate her [Joan’s] attributes. One thing, we who knew her would agree, is that all she was, all she did, was for the love of justice. We enjoyed her reports to the Board and her tiaras, necklaces and lapel buttons; she would call attention to them as she delivered a message no one could dispute. I can see her ready smile and her chuckles as she would relate her “adventures” facing not only policemen but CEOs of corporations with bravery and truth,” wrote long-time National Farm Worker Ministry board member Olgha Sierra Sandman. 

Joan became involved in the farm worker movement in 1973 when she joined a friend who was starting a movement in North Carolina to improve the living and working conditions for farm workers. The organization became the Triangle Friends of the United Farm Workers and was Joan’s career and guiding passion for much of her life. It also led her to the National Farm Worker Ministry where she served on the board.

“Joan was a really active board member,” remembers Virginia Nesmith, former executive director of NFWM. “She would be at places where pickles were sold and ask people not to buy them. She was very involved in getting endorsements from churches for the Mt. Olive boycott. We got UCC [United Church of Christ] quickly but the big one we needed was the United Methodists. She was heavily engaged in that work.” 

Known for her passionate commitment to farm workers, every mention of her name was also accompanied by a whimsical discussion of the hats she handcrafted to display her support for the farm worker.

“Joan Preiss used to wear these outrageous, homemade political hats,” remembers David Wildman, NFWM board member. “For Mt. Olive, she wore a hat with a pickle. She’d wear them to unusual places, like going into a grocery store to meet with the manager about a boycott. That determination was really wonderful.”