She married and raised a family of four children, then separated from her husband and worked as a teacher, secretary, and assistant in a university department.
She began Zen practice in her 40s with Hakuyu Taizan Maezumi in Los Angeles,[3] and later with Hakuun Yasutani and Soen Nakagawa.
Shortly after Beck’s departure in 2006, she revoked Dharma transmission from two senior students: Ezra Bayda and Elizabeth Hamilton.
Beck also stated that Zen Center San Diego should not claim to represent her or her teaching.
[6][5][7] In 2006 Joko moved to Prescott, Arizona, where she continued to teach until she retired as a teacher in late 2010.