Joan (Shea) Fitzgerald, 84, of Wethersfield, passed away Wednesday evening, (December 2, 2009) at home surrounded by her family. She was born in Derriana, Waterville, Co. Kerry, Ireland on April 24, 1925 to Patrick and Catherine (King) Shea. She left County Kerry for the United States in 1947. She resided in Wethersfield for 49 years. Joan worked at the Royal Typewriter until 1956. While her children were young, she worked several part time jobs nights and weekends so she could be home with her family. Then she worked for the State of Connecticut, Department of Transportation for 18 years, retiring in 1988. After retirement she was kept busy babysitting her grandchildren, driving her elderly relatives to doctors and shopping, delivering meals on wheels, making sandwiches for the Corpus Christi Church sandwich collection and knitting Irish sweaters and gifts. She was a communicant of Corpus Christi Church since 1963 and was a member of the Corpus Christi Women’s Club. She was a promoter for the Association of the Miraculous Medal. She was a member of the CSEA Retiree Union, a lifetime member of the Irish American Home Society, and a strong supporter of the Hartford Gaelic Football Club. She was predeceased by her husband of 56 years, Michael Fitzgerald, earlier this year. Besides her husband and parents, she was also predeceased by her sister Mary Shea and her husband Thomas, her sister Margaret Shea, and her brother Michael Shea. She is survived by her children Kathleen Fitzgerald Christ and her husband Richard of Wethersfield; Eileen Fitzgerald McCormick and her husband David of West Hartford; John P. Fitzgerald and his wife Mary of Rocky Hill; seven loving grandchildren, Maureen and Elizabeth Christ, Brendan, Grace, and Josie McCormick, Derrianna and Rebecca Fitzgerald, and a devoted niece, Peggy Shea Dowd and her husband Jim. She also leaves a nephew Kevin Shea, two grandnieces Heather and Eileen Dowd and two grandnephews, Sean and Matthew Dowd. Many thanks to our wonderful caregiver, Jadwiga. Funeral services will be held Saturday, December 5, 2009 at 9:15am from the Farley-Sullivan Funeral Home, 34 Beaver Rd, Wethersfield, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial, at 10am in Corpus Christi Church, 601 Silas Deane Hwy, Wethersfield. Interment will follow in the family plot at Mount. St. Benedict Cemetery (Section T), 1 Cottage Grove Rd, Bloomfield. Friends and relatives may call on the family Friday, December 4, between 5-8pm at the Funeral Home. In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made to the Irish American Home Society Scholarship Fund, 132 Commerce St, Glastonbury, CT, 06033, or the Alzheimer’s Association, 279 New Britain Road, Suite 5, Kensington, CT 06037. For further information or to leave expressions of sympathy, please visit www.farleysullivan.com.
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