Ivan Carl Brainard, Jr.

Ivan C. Brainard Jr.

September 25, 1962 – October 26, 2026

Ivan C. Brainard Jr., 64, passed away peacefully at home on October 26, 2026, with his beloved wife, Joy, by his side, following several years of medical complications.

Born on September 25, 1962, to Ivan C. Brainard Sr. and Marilyn (Terry) Brainard, Ivan grew up in Altamont, New York, and graduated from Guilderland High School in 1980 and went on to study diesel technology in Ohio. While in high school he was working as a dishwasher at Guilderland Center Nursing Home where one of the most important chapters of his life began.

It was there that he met Joy Valerie Sanders, a housekeeper who didn’t have a car. Ivan did, a little blue one, and he began giving her rides after work. The two fell fast for each other on those short rides to Joy’s house. Ivan would often stop at the Quaker Street sign, and with a loving smile say, “I don’t want to take you home.”

They married on August 15, 1981, at Bellevue Gospel Chapel, beginning a marriage that would span more than 45 years. Together they raised three children, Jonathan, Hope, and Tim. He especially looked forward to trips to visit his children and grandchildren, and even in his final days, his next visit remained on his mind.

Ivan enjoyed camping, hunting, and watching NASCAR. He wasn’t particularly fond of early mornings, but there were two occasions that could reliably get him out of bed: a day of hunting and Thanksgiving. His favorite holiday coupled the two, as Ivan was always proud to be responsible for the turkey, stuffing, and gravy.

His culinary preferences were entirely his own. Ivan was known to eat raw potatoes, and even fresh venison while processing a deer after a hunt. At the fair, he would bypass the French fries altogether and ask the vendors for a raw potato instead. They, of course intrigued, would happily give him one just for the entertainment of watching him eat it.

Some of the most meaningful moments of Ivan’s life were also the simplest: sitting beside the fire with Joy, sharing thoughts and finding quiet comfort in simply being together. The ordinary moments of a life spent side by side.

One of his favorite things was watching Joy chase Buddy around the house, trying to get him to take a walk. Buddy preferred a game of keep-away, and the production never failed to find Ivan in stitches. Buddy, who had little concern for his own size, loved climbing into Ivan’s lap, where he was always convinced he belonged.

He had a life with triumphs and trials alike, and still to the very end when they passed that sign on Quaker Street, he would slow down and tease her with a loving smile saying, “I didn’t want to take you home… but now I do.”

If you’re ever driving west on route 7, tip your hat to that Quaker Street sign you might have passed without a second thought. For Ivan and Joy, it marked the beginning of a love story that lasted more than 45 years, one that began with a young man who simply didn’t want to say goodbye to his girl.

Ivan is survived by his beloved wife, Joy Valerie Brainard; his children, Jonathan D. Brainard, Jennifer Hope Occhipinti and her husband, Raymond, and Timothy Carl Brainard and his wife, Monique; his grandchildren, Adeline Faith Occhipinti and Emilia Louise Brainard; his cherished mother-in-law, Faith Sanders; his brother, John K. Brainard and his wife, Carol; and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Ivan C. Brainard Sr. and Marilyn Brainard; his sister, Deborah Ann Brainard; and his grandson, Alexander (Zander) Carl Occhipinti

The words of Isaiah 40:31 offer a fitting remembrance of his faith:

“Yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary.”