JOAN C. YINGLING
1930 – 2008
Joan Yingling was born Joan Catherine Kelly and raised in Philadelphia, PA. She was married to Ed Yingling, another native of Philadelphia, and together they had seven children. Places they lived include: Glenolden, PA, Merion Station, PA, West Chester, PA, and Audubon, PA
As a hobby, Joan wrote poems for her young children in the 1960’s. Decades later Joan’s daughter, Lydia (Yingling) Cohn, discovered the long-forgotten poems tucked away in a desk drawer. Lydia’s daughter, Jess Cohn Taylor, is credited with the idea of posthumously publishing her grandmother’s poems into children’s books.
Lydia and Jess embarked on their journey to share Joan’s talent and in 2019 the first book, “The Story of the Can’t That Could” was released. It received two literary awards and was nominated for Best Children’s Book by the Author Academy Elite.
In 2021, another award-winning book, “The Story of The Curious Elf”, was released. Presently, plans are in the works for a third book.
Joan was a spirited woman who enjoyed nothing more than getting together with family and friends. She taught herself how to cook, bake, sew, knit, and crochet among other things. She was an avid reader and loved doing crossword puzzles. She was a huge fan of the Philadelphia Eagles. With such a busy life raising seven children and working full time as a hairdresser, it’s hard to know how she found time to write the many poems/stories she wrote.
“The Story of the Can’t That Could” and “The Story of The Curious Elf” are two of our family’s favorites. I hope both these stories become favorites for your family as well.
Lydia (Yingling) Cohn
Joan C. Yingling 