On Thursday evenings throughout the summer, Joan Bruzzone can often be found at the Moraga Commons, listening to live music and, as the spirit moves her, dancing along.

She rarely misses the free Summer Concert Series presented by the Moraga Park Foundation. Joan and the Bruzzone family are also longtime sponsors, contributing each year to help the foundation bring talented performers to Moraga and keep the concerts free for families throughout Lamorinda and surrounding communities.

Music is one of Joan’s great loves, but so is simply being around people. She regularly attends the monthly Lamorinda Movers dinners, where she knows to save room for the chocolate cake brought by the organization’s president, Keith Katzman.

Now in her ninth decade, Joan remains interested in what is happening around her and decidedly willing to express an opinion.

Her interest in American history is personal. Joan’s parents came from Springfield, Illinois, and she says her great-grandfather was William H. Herndon, Abraham Lincoln’s final and longest-serving law partner. Herndon joined Lincoln’s practice in 1844, and their partnership continued until Lincoln’s assassination in 1865.

Joan grew up in Fairfax, attended Catholic schools and graduated from Stanford University in 1949. Her future husband, Russell Bruzzone, studied mechanical engineering at UC Berkeley and later earned an MBA from Stanford. They met while working for a subsidiary of Standard Oil and married in 1951.

Their life together quickly became an adventure. Russell and his best man, Gordon “Gordy” Coates, opened a soft-serve ice cream business in Maracaibo, Venezuela. Joan joined Russell there with their young daughter, and their twin sons were born there in 1953.

The business grew to five kiosks, although making ice cream in a tropical climate with unreliable electricity and milk that sometimes arrived already sour was not easy. The Bruzzones returned to California in 1954 with little profit but plenty of stories.

Back in Lamorinda, Joan and Russell worked together through Russell J. Bruzzone, Inc. Russell handled design and construction, while Joan helped manage the family business. Their projects included homes in Lafayette’s Burton Valley, the Lafayette Plaza Shopping Center, the Moraga Shopping Center and the Four Corners Center in Concord.

Their mark can also be found on a Moraga street map. Joan named several streets in the Moraga Bluffs for family members. Breck Court combines the beginning of Bruzzone with Joan’s English maiden name, Eck, while Russell Drive honors her husband.

The couple raised six children, all of whom graduated from Acalanes High School and earned college degrees. Their family later grew to include seven grandchildren and another generation of great-grandchildren.

Joan’s generosity often shows up in small, personal ways. She enjoys picking up Johnny’s Donuts and distributing them to friends in her community. She visits SiSi's Caffe to meet people, and remain connected to the town around her.

She also keeps an eye out for people who are trying to build something of their own. After reading about Lafayette baker Frankie Tinley Jr., Joan wanted to meet him and learn more about his work. Frankie is a graduate of Bauman College’s Holistic Chef Program and works full time at Las Trampas, helping adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Outside of work, he is developing his own baking business, creating cookies, cakes and specialty desserts.

Joan asked for an introduction, welcomed Frankie for a visit and is now helping arrange a cookie tasting for residents in her community. It is a small example of something she has practiced throughout her life: recognizing potential and finding a way to encourage it.

After nearly a century, Joan is still supporting local institutions, sharing treats with friends, dancing at the Commons and helping new ideas find their footing. She has watched Lamorinda change dramatically, but she remains an active part of what holds it together.