RIP my friend.

Dr. JoAnne Ruvoli, 49, of Wadsworth, Ill., a professor, scholar, researcher and writer, passed away on March 16, 2018 after a fierce battle with leukemia.

An assistant professor of English at Ball State University, JoAnne nurtured a lifelong devotion to education. She previously held a Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowship in the Humanities at UCLA. She earned a doctorate in English from the University of Illinois at Chicago, a master's degree from Loyola University Chicago and a bachelor's degree from Northwestern University. Her specialties were in Italian-American literature, Gender and Women's Studies, Beat Literature, and silent film. She widely published articles on critical analysis of
literature, cinema, Italian-American culture, women's studies and comics.
In addition to her teaching and research, JoAnne enjoyed traveling and sketching. She equally loved her native city of Chicago and her adopted city of Los Angeles, crisscrossing the country many times for work or adventure. As big as Lake Michigan is, she needed something bigger -- the Pacific Ocean with its California sunsets that could not be equaled.
JoAnne had a no-holds-barred honesty and a passion for discussion, equaled only by her generosity and her love of the "Gilmore Girls." She carried the weight of the world on her shoulders, especially championing those who were discriminated against.
She is survived by her loving husband, Henry Gruba, and dear parents, Joanne and Thomas Ruvoli, Sr. She was the beloved sister of Thomas, Jr. (Laura),
JoEllen and Ronald (Tracy) Ruvoli and aunt to five nieces.
She will be greatly missed by her many friends, colleagues and especially her family. JoAnne was truly one of a kind, even though she was a twin, which shows what a wonderfully complex puzzle she was. A voracious reader, bowler and coffee aficionado, she made book towers upon book towers, the arrangement of which only she could understand. She was a powerful force for good, with an unwavering moral compass that often tilted toward enraged. JoAnne wore her heart on her sleeve, and the world was lucky to have her. There is so much left undone.