Joan Parsons Voyles family racing history dates back to the early 1930’s. She is the oldest daughter of 1950 Indianapolis 500 winner Johnnie Parsons. Her father won 11 national championships between 1948-1950 and was inducted in the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 2008, Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 2004 and National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 1984. Her stepfather, Duane Carter, was co-founder of the United States Auto Club and had more than 47 starts in AAA and USAC events. He was inducted in the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 1991 and National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 1989.
Her half-brother, Pancho Carter, and brother, Johnny Parsons Jr., also drove in the Indianapolis 500 and share along with their father’s 50 Indianapolis 500 starts. Both are members of the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame.
Joan grew up on the racing circuit, dividing her time between southern California and Speedway, Indiana. As an adult, she has maintained her roots in Indiana and is the wife of prominent Indianapolis attorney James H. Voyles Jr. She is the proud mother of six children and twenty-one grandchildren. She served as past president of the Salvation Army ladies auxiliary, Indianapolis Ballet auxiliary, served as an officer of the North Group of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, and also chairs the annual fundraiser benefiting the Riley Children’s Hospital. She is the first woman elected to sit on the Board of the United States Auto Club Benevolent Fund. Joan has attended more than 61 Indianapolis 500 races, and is extremely proud of her family’s long history and many accomplishments in auto racing.