Loving Mother, Grandmother
Joanne (O’Brien) Connell, 77, formerly of Westford, passed away peacefully on Friday, March 25, 2022, at home in Beverly, surrounded by her family. She was the beloved wife of the late Attorney Daniel D. Connell, with whom she shared 42 years of marriage.
Born in Lowell, Joanne was the third daughter of the late Ralph T. and Ann M. (Dunleavy) O’Brien. She attended Sacred Heart Parish School before graduating from Keith Hall with the class of 1962.
Following high school, Joanne worked for the New England Telephone Company. After years as a stay-at-home mother, she returned to the workforce as an editorial assistant at the Ayer Bureau of The Lowell Sun. Later, she served as a teacher’s aide at Groton Country Day School of the Holy Union while her fourth daughter was in attendance. She continued working with students as a paraprofessional for the Town of Westford at Blanchard Middle School until her retirement in 2012.
Joanne’s gentle disposition and welcoming and inclusive nature allowed her to establish connections and make and maintain relationships throughout her life. While her sisters were her first and best friends, she had plenty of opportunity to make new ones while raising her family, practicing her faith, celebrating her Irish heritage and, of course, watching and traveling far and wide to attend Boston College football games with the love of her life, Danny.
She lived most of her life in Westford where she was a communicant of St. Catherine of Alexandria Parish. She derived tremendous strength from her Catholic faith and did her best to put it into action each day of her life.
Joanne is survived by four children, Mary E. Connell and her husband, Cesar Maiorino, of Watertown; Ann M. Cooper and her husband, Daniel, of Tampa, Florida; Alice C. Carter and her husband, James, of Beverly; and Danielle D. Connell of Medford; three cherished grandchildren: Sheamus D. and Emma C. Cooper; and Vivian C. Carter, and four bonus grandchildren: Alexandra and Ivy Maiorino; and Reid and Paige Carter; a sister, Alice G. Santos of Lowell; and a sister-in-law, Rita G. (Vigneault) Connell, of Westford; several nieces, nephews, and cousins.
She was predeceased by her sister, Mary F. Richardson, her brother, Ralph O’Brien; brothers-in-law, Thomas Richardson, Arthur “Herky” Santos, Thomas J. Connell, William D. Connell, John L. Connell Jr., and Joseph R. Connell; and sisters-in-law, Joan (Crowley) Connell and Donna (O’Dea) Connell.
The family wishes to acknowledge the loving care and support of the Carter family with whom she lived; the caring and brilliant Steven J. Isakoff, MD, Michelle Farrell-White, NP, and team of Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center; the compassionate and skilled staff members of Care Dimensions, North Shore; and Cathy Clancy, of Westford, who became a friend after beginning as a volunteer driver for the American Cancer Society’s Road to Recovery Program.
Text us when you get home, Mum.
Friends will be received at St. Catherine of Alexandria Church, 107 North Main St., Westford, on Wednesday from 4 to 8 p.m. Joanne’s Funeral Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at St. Catherine of Alexandria Church on Thursday at 10:00 a.m. Interment in St. Catherine of Alexandria Cemetery, 20 Pine Ridge Rd., Westford.
In lieu of flowers, please consider supporting the following organizations which contributed greatly to the longevity of Joanne’s life:
Directed donation via check (noting ACS Road to Recovery Program in memo) to: American Cancer Society, Road to Recovery, P.O. Box 22718, Oklahoma City, OK 73123.
Donation in memory of Joanne Connell to: Massachusetts General Hospital, Cancer Center, 125 Nashua Street, Suite 540, Boston, MA 02114, <a style=”font-weight:bold” href=”https://giving.massgeneral.org/donate/cancer-center/”>Massachusetts General Hospital</a>.
Joanne’s four-legged canine protector and companion, Summer Carter, hopes that you will consider brightening someone’s day by training to volunteer as part of MGH’s Pet Therapy Program.
Arrangements are in the care of the Morse-Bayliss Funeral Home, Lowell. Funeral Director, Frederick W. Healy.
One response to “Joanne (O’Brien) Connell”
Joanne O’Brien was my first girlfriend. Joanne had a slight tic back then and was kind of shy about it. I thought she was beautiful and almost started a gang war when she fell for me. I can’t remember her boyfriend’s name but he wanted to fight me over her. I worked on my fathers farm back then and was buff. He met me at the O’Connell Park on Gotham Street to fight but after facing me behind the school decided he didn’t want to fight. Joanne and me dated for about a year or two. She was a good person and wound up with a great guy in Danny. Danny and I went to Keith Academy at the same time.