Obituary of Joan Harrold Thompson

Joan (Harrold) Thompson, of Burlington, formerly of Winchester, a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, and great grandmother, passed away peacefully on Monday morning, October 28, 2024. She was 89 years old. Joan was born in Cambridge, the youngest of two daughters born to Charles and Evelyn Harrold of Winchester. She graduated from Winchester High School in 1953 and attended the Katharine Gibbs Secretarial School in Boston.

Upon graduation from Katharine Gibbs, she worked at Beggs and Cobb, MIT Lincoln Labs and then took a position as an executive secretary at the National Company in Malden. There a coworker, Gloria Thompson, offered to introduce her to her brother - Arthur.  After first asking to “see his picture” Gloria presented Joan with a photo of Captain Arthur Thompson in his dress army military uniform, and she quickly agreed to the date.  After a short courtship Joan and Arthur married on October 13, 1956.  They purchased a home in Burlington on Laurel Hill Lane and lived there for the next 60 years.

Joan and Arthur added 3 Children between 1956 and 1960, Dale, Stephen and Lori.   It was a home filled with laughter, faith, and love.  Joan worked as a bookkeeper for Manion’s Star Market in Burlington for over 25 years, but always considered her first role of wife and mother as a true calling. 

Joan wanted her children to have an appreciation for culture and the arts so educational experiences like museums and the theater were always on the family itinerary. 

During summer vacations, Joan and Art brought the children to visit her parents in Florida where they made the annual pilgrimage to Disney World and all of the Florida attractions. 

In later years, when the grandchildren arrived, they spent countless summers at the Balsams Grand Resort in Dixville Notch New Hampshire enjoying everything that resort had to offer. 

During retirement Joan and Art had the great good fortune of travelling to and visiting many countries in Europe. 

Joan gave her children a truly wonderful childhood and built in them a strong foundation based on faith, hope, charity and kindness toward others. She was always there to encourage and love them. 

Joan relished being a grandmother and loving each child in a special and unique way, nurturing them from infants, into adulthood, and eventually into parenthood.   She was thrilled to be “Nana” to her 5 great grandchildren.

Joan was very active in her church and community.  She was one of the original parishioners of St. Malachy’s Church when it opened in 1963.  She taught religious education, helped run their Christmas Bazaar, and had the honor of serving as President of the “Morgairs” from 1968-1969. 

Joan was also very active in local and national politics, working on Robert Kennedy’s Presidential Campaign as well as many of the local Burlington elections. She worked at the polls on election day and enjoyed playing bingo with her friends.  She was an accomplished seamstress and took great pride in making her daughter’s wedding gown. 

Joan truly had a wonderful life and will be greatly missed by her family and friends.

Joan was the beloved wife of the late Arthur W. Thompson, Jr.  She was the loving mother of Dale Strachan & her husband Joseph of Bedford, Stephen Thompson of Yarmouthport & his late wife Patricia, and Lori Delisle of Leominster.  She was the caring sister of the late Patricia Duncan. She was the proud grandmother of Jennifer Volpicelli & her husband Richard, Joseph Strachan & his wife Kendra, Colleen Becker & her husband Cameron, Emily Thompson & fiancée Eric Apgar, and Patrick Thompson. She was the great grandmother of Nicholas Volpicelli, James Volpicelli, Elliana Becker, Madelynn Becker, and Vivian Strachan. She was the proud aunt of many nieces and nephews.

Visiting hours will be held at the Edward V. Sullivan Funeral Home, 43 Winn Street, Burlington on Wednesday, October 30 from 4-7 p.m. Funeral from the Sullivan Funeral Home on Thursday October 31 at 9:45 a.m. followed by a Mass of Christian Burial in St. Michael’s Church, Bedford at 11 a.m. Services will conclude with a burial at Pine Haven Cemetery, Burlington.  Memorials in Joan’s name may be made to St. Michael’s Parish, www.bedfordcatholic.org, 90 Concord Road, Bedford, MA 01730.  For online guestbook and video tribute see www.sullivanfuneralhome.net

 

Dale's Eulogy

 

Good Morning,

 

On behalf of my brother Stephen and Sister Lori I would like to welcome you to the funeral of our mother Joan H. Thompson.

 

I personally would like to take this opportunity to thank my Pastor, Father Kevin Toomey,  for officiating her service today.  During the past few years when Mom was still able to attend mass she did so here at St Michaels.  She would accompany Joe and I to the 4 o’clock mass.  Her favorite part of the ritual was having a chance to greet Fr. Kevin, Deacon Glen or Fr. Tom before exiting the church.  Father would always comment that She always had smile on her face when she greeted him and I think it was because going to mass meant a great deal to her and she was so happy to be able to participate in it.

 

 We would also like to thank and acknowledge the staff of Brightview Senior Living in Billerica, Sunrise Senior Living in Burlington and my aides from Right at Home (Justine, Violene and Cecile) who took such wonderful care of Mom over the past years and in particular the past few days when she was transitioning thru her final chapter.  Everyone treated Mom with the utmost respect and dignity, and I will forever be grateful to the angels that kept her safe and comfortable and enabled her to help her find her way home in a pain free and peaceful manor.

 

So, What can one say about a person who had such a profound impact on my life and the lives of others around her??

 

In reading some of the responses to my Facebook post announcing Mom’s passing, it quickly became apparent to me that A LOT OF PEOPLE LIKED MOM. Some people commented that she “was quite a lady, beautiful, wonderful, gracious, lovely and special.  Others claimed she was sweet, classy, super nice and funny.  “She was hilarious” my niece Heidi commented and that certainly made me smile.  My daughter Jen commented “she was one of a kind” and Jen, you are certainly right about that.

 

The truth is that Mom was indeed all these things and to me, oh so much more!!!

 

Born on Oct 9^th, 1935, Mom grew up in Winchester, the daughter of Charles and Evelyn Harrold.  Grampie was a patrolman who rose thru the ranks to become chief of police in Winchester and Nana was an executive secretary to the President and Vice President of the George W Bentley food brokerage company in Boston.  Though it was a bit unusual for Moms to work in those days, Nana’s income afforded them certain luxuries that most people at the time could not afford.  Mom grew up in a lovely home on Brookside Avenue in Winchester (though as she would say “not on the WEST SIDE”) and her parents owned a small cottage in Buzzards Bay that Grampie painstakingly renovated into a little “doll house”.

 

During the war years Grampie went to Florida to train the troops and Nana continued to work full time.  Mom was sent to Rosary Academy, a boarding school in Watertown Mass and spent entire summers away from her family at Camp Pesquassawasis in Maine.  These experiences were difficult for a very young Joan to absorb but with the help of her sister Patsy she persevered.  What is most telling about this period in her life is the impact it would have on her later in life when she became a wife and mother.

 

Joan became a mother when she had me in 1957, Stephen in 1959 and Lori in 1960.  During our early years Mom was fiercely protective of her children.  Her job was to be our protector at all costs,  keep us safe, happy and secure.   She was always loving but could also be NO Nonsense.  She had rules and those rules were enforced for our benefit.  Now that I’m a Mom I must admit that I can look back and see the wisdom in her ways. 

 

Mom expected her children to respect others (especially their elders),

We never had to be told to acknowledge our grandparents when we were in their presence.  We always greeted them with a hug and kiss.  They were special people and were to be treated as such.

Expressing kindness and compassion toward others was PARAMOUNT.  One of our cousins who was 2 weeks older than me was born with serious disabilities.  Although we were aware Vinnie was different, he was “A Thompson” and we knew to show him the same respect by treating him no differently than any other cousin. 

 

Mom and Dad included us in everything they did.  Rarely did they go out alone.  Every Sunday we would drive down to either Stoneham, Revere or Winthrop to visit Nana and Grampie Thompson, the Salernos, Campanaros, Nuzzolas or Ciampas.  They were Dad’s extended family, and they played an important role in his life and therefore in our lives too.  It was one big happy Italian family.  We had a lot of fun, a lot of food  and we always enjoyed each other’s company. 

 

In the late 60’s Mom and Dad took us to NYC and that was a huge thrill.  When Disney World opened in 1972, we were there. When we were home  they took us to movies, plays, the theatre, museums and to a host of different restaurants.  To this day, I am still haunted by

 

49, 56, 110, 3 and 36 for Sioux City…………………

18, 9, 22, 47 and 65 for Kansas City…………………..

 

Great food but that constant number calling would drive anyone to drink!

The Bottom line with Dad and Mom, was that family came 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd. 

 

Mom was smart, funny and very talented in so many ways,

She was a great cook except for when she discovered Weight watchers when the delicious homemade spaghetti sauce, chicken pies, meatloaf and desserts were tossed aside replaced by “broiled chicken breasts with beets and brussel spouts…………………uugggggghhhhhhhhhhhhh.   My dear friend Mel who spent a lot of time at our house would  always say to me -  Are you kidding  “I loved coming to your house for dinner – I always lost a few pounds while I was there!!!!  To each his own, I guess.

 

Mom was a wiz at the piano and at the sewing machine.  For years she made many of our school clothes and continued to custom make outfits well into our high school years.  Pendelton suits with 2 skirts and casual paint suits for the girls and leisure suits for the boys were the order of the day (no jeans allowed in school back in those days).  The pies ta resistance was when she custom made my wedding gown.  She spend a lot of time and effort making it and I have to say it was beautiful, it really was.

 

One of Moms biggest passions was watching “Dancing with the Stars”.  One year she was totally enthralled with Emmit Smith of the Dallas Cowboys.  She was never a football fan but she didn’t care because that guy could dance!!  I remember contacting his promotional office in Texas and asking them to send a photo of him in his uniform.  They did send it and he signed it  “to Joan, Keep on Dancin”.   That was one of her prized possessions and she proudly displayed it on top of the piano for  years and years.

 

Mom  encouraged us to ALWAYS do our best.  She supported us on and off the field, attending our games, checking in with teachers on open house night to make sure we were on track.  If she was proud of something you did, she never hesitated to let you know.  In later years she would thank me profusely for anything I did for her and though it sometimes embarrassed me,  that acknowledgement certainly meant a great deal to me.

 

Mom LOVED PEOPLE and wanted people to love her in return.  If she liked you you were always greeted with a hug and a kiss and a squeeze.  She did have a number of fears and phobias (dating back to her boarding school years) and one of those was the going to the dreaded dentist.  Lucky for her she found a compassionate and caring dentist, Dr. Ibrahim who would never push her to do anything she didn’t want to do.  At the end of her sessions with him, Dr. Ibrahim, the dental technician and Mom would have a “group Hug”.  How charming is that!

 

You know Its funny I just saw Dr. Ibrahim a week or so ago and I had my own group hug with him – just for Mom. 

 

Mom adored her grandchildren and great grandchildren.  She loved them unconditionally.  When I had Jenny in 1985 she broke the land/sea record busting into the recovery room 30 seconds after I was brought in from the operating room.    To this day I don’t know how she pulled it off.  I suspect since I had Jenny at the Winchester Hospital she pulled the “my father was the chief of police” card and they let her in………………….

 

When Joey and Colleen were born 4 years later, she stayed with us for 2 weeks.  I remember getting up at 2am and dragging myself down the hall toward the baby’s room.  She of course had already beaten me there, turned to me and said go back to bed I’ve got it.  Needless to say she got no argument from me that day.  Thanks Mom.

 

When Steve and Patty had Emmy and Patrick she helped them too.  When Patty got sick during her 2^nd pregnancy with Patrick she dropped everything to be with them.  When Patty sadly passed away a year later when the children were 1 and 2 years old she drove down to Ashland every week to help Steve with the children.  When they moved to cape cod ashe continued to offer her support until the children got a lot older.   Mom’s devotion to them was unparalleled and it blew me away.

 

Mom loved her 5 great grandchildren.  She had a special bond with Nicky, the oldest.  I remember when he was six years old, he sensed that Nana was struggling a bit and seemed unsteady on her feet when she was walking.  Without hesitation and without being prodded he instinctively grabbed her hand – walked her to the bathroom and waited outside the door until she finished. When she came out, he again grabbed her hand and accompanied her back to the family room to go back and watch TV.   What an amazing thing for a young boy to do!!!  But truthfully I think that this demonstrates what comes around goes around.  When you leave a legacy like Mom did for us, that we then passed on to our children is it really any wonder that  subsequent generations wouldn’t pick up on that and follow their lead??  Compassion, kindness and respect - what a beautiful thing!!!

 

Before Mom really started to decline – she did get to know JJ and Ellie.  Unfortunately, she was too ill to really enjoy her namesake Madelynn Joan and Vivie, but I will tell you that although she was totally non verbal at that point she would actually respond with “cute” or “adorable” when I showed her pictures of them………………Amazing…………………….

 

Mom had a lot of friends.  There was of course the Laurel Hill Lane Gang and the girls from “club”.  High school friends who got together once a month and sat up to all hours of the night laughing their heads off and cackling so loudly that no one could possibly sleep thru that ruckus.

 

 I loved the ladies from club, but I always hated it when club was at our house especially on a school night. 

 

Mom met new Burlington friends thru her work with town politics.  She developed a treasured friendship with “Lil Larson”.  She loved Lil and always told me they laughed from the time the polls opened until the time they closed.  Who would have guessed that many years later Lils daughter Beverly and Joans daughter Dale would become sister in laws!!!

 

Mom was a woman of great faith and met more friends in the mid 1960’s when she starting teaching Sunday school and joined the St. Malachy’s “Morgairs”,   A church sponsored woman’s soladity group dedicated to fund raising activities.  In 1968 she was elected President of that organization and when her year was up, they presented her with a beautiful mirror with a plaque at the top that read “Joan H. Thompson” President of the St. Malachy’s Morgairs 1968-1969.   

 

What’s interesting to note is that Mom took that mirror with her every time she moved – from Laurel Hill Lane, to an apartment in Burlington , to Brightview and finally to Sunrise.  She was so proud of that gift.  On Tuesday I removed it from her room at Sunrise and took it home with me.   What a fabulous  momento to remember her by.

 

While still a member of the Morgairs Mom was selected by her peers, the priests in the parish and the archdiocese to participate in a public speaking training conference at the Marist Center in Waltham.  I was always proud of Mom, but this was “over the top”.  I remember thinking “Wow” Mom must  really be something special if they selected her for something like that”.  What an honor.  What an accomplishment. 

 

One final reflection of Mom was her obsession with shoes – yes, I said Shoes.

I use to lovingly refer to her as the Imelda Marcos of Burlington.  Every time she stepped out the door to go shopping, she came back with a new pair of shoes.  I never saw anything like it.  When she arrived home, she would burst thru the door yelling

“I got Shoes”……………………………..it remains a family joke to this day.

When I was getting her wardrobe ready to give to Kevin Sullivan for the wake and service,  I purchased a new dress, sweater jacket and jewelry for her to wear.  Mom always liked to look nice so I bought what I thought she would like.  I assumed that she would of course have black shoes in her closet from her Imelda Marcos years to wear with this new outfit, but alas,  I was wrong.  The only black footwear I could find were Easy Spirit slip on sneakers.  “Oh NO” I thought, despite that fact that NOONE would ever see them, I knew that these would never do.

 I ran to DSW and came back with a new pair of black Slingback shoes and gave them to Kevin.  The truth is that I didn’t want to take any chances that years from now she would great me at the pearly gates saying, “are you kidding me with the Easy Spirit Sneakers????????’ 

No worries, Mom – “I got some SHOES”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I could go on with these stories for days – but I think that by this point, you all get the gist of Mom.

 

Later in the mass this morning you will hear a reading from the 2^nd letter of Paul to Timothy – when I saw it, I thought it was worth mentioning in this Eulogy………………..

 

In that reading it states

“For I am like a libation and the time of my departure is at hand.

I have competed well; I have finished the Race.  I have kept the faith.

From now on the crown of righteousness awaits me, which the Lord, the just judge will award to me on that day…………

And not only to me but to all who have longed for his appearance.

 

Well Mom, you have indeed finished the race and in my opinion you came in 1^st.

 

As sad as we are to see you go, we take comfort in the fact that you will once again be United with Dad, Nana and Grampie Harrold, your sister Pat, your surrogate daughter “Mel” and all the wonderful family members and friends that have pre-deceased you.

 

We want you to know that we are all very proud to be your children.  For me personally, of all the roles you played in my life – mentor, protector, advisor and advocate, THE ROLE THAT MEANS THE MOST TO ME IS THAT FIRST AND FOREMOST,  YOU WERE ALWAYS MY VERY BEST FRIEND. 

 

I look forward to the day when I can meet you at the gates of heaven and you can greet me with your trademark – “Give me a kiss and a HUG and a squeeze”

May God Bless you and may you rest in peace.

I love you and I will always miss you……………………