JOANNE PLANK

PLANK, Joanne (JoJo) Loving mother, grandmother and great-grandmother A loving wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, died November 28, 2022, in New London, NH, due to complications from a heart attack. She was 94 and was married for 73 years to Richard (Pete) Plank, who died 7 months earlier. She grew up in West Medford, MA and later lived in Duxbury, Lexington and Concord, MA. She leaves her son and daughter-in-law, Jeffrey and Jane Plank of Weston, MA; and her daughter and son-in-law, Jill and Joseph Butler of Sunapee, NH. She was predeceased by her eldest daughter, Laurel Plank Reed. Joanne attended Medford High School and then Bates College. While living in West Medford, she met the love of her life, Pete Plank, and was married in 1949. The couple moved to San Diego, CA, where Joanne had their first child, Laurel (Lori). Pete was in the Navy serving long stints at sea. At the end of the Korean war, the family moved to Hawaii and Joanne loved it there. Then they moved back to West Medford and lived with Joanne's family, while Pete attended business school. After they had their second child, Jeffrey Otto, and Pete graduated from business school, they moved into the lovely town of Duxbury. First, renting a red house on Washington Street; they later bought a summer cottage on Wadsworth Lane, added heat and made it a full-time residence. Joanne had her third child, Jill, and created a wonderful home to raise her three children. They all joined the Pilgrim Church and the Duxbury Yacht Club and Joanne joined the Duxbury Garden Club. The family loved living in Duxbury, especially the beach and boating in the summer. One of her favorite sayings was, "you better get out of that wet suit or you will get tick tally roo." She hosted many joyous occasions and holidays as she was a wonderful cook and loved decorating her home with flowers. In 1969, during a bad snowstorm, Pete got stuck while fighting Rte.128 traffic on the long commute from Burlington, MA to Duxbury. He called her and said, "we are moving." So, she packed up the family and moved to Lexington, MA. There, her two younger children attended Muzzy, Jr High and Lexington High Schools. She joined the Hancock Church, where she loved singing in the choir, and the Lexington Garden Club, where she later served as President. She and Pete, with their daughter Lori, started a "reach out" program at Hancock Church to help teens with drug problems. She would ferry children to ski lessons at Blue Hill Mountain, ice skating at the Hayden Center, or gymnastic practices. After her children grew up and moved out of the house, she lived by the adage, "If you rest you rust." This led her to volunteer at Mt. Auburn Hospital and at the Museum of Fine Arts, as an associate, and supported their "Art in Bloom" event. She was a talented gardener who loved arranging flowers, but loved even more the social aspects of being with the "flower ladies." Joanne, like her husband, had a spark for being with people and even though she lost her sight later in life, she remained very sociable and loved making friends with anyone. Throughout her life she was a real trooper and rarely complained. She would make things happen to bring success to her spouse and children. In addition to her two children, Joanne is survived by grandchildren, Adam Reed and his spouse Sarah Reed, Joey Butler and his spouse Valerie Butler (pregnant with twins), Robbie Butler and his spouse Bella Butler, Eliza Butler and her spouse Jacob Charles, Courtney Plank Rault and her spouse Joseph Rault IV, and Phoebe, Sally and Otto Plank. She is also survived by two great-grandchildren, Robert "Eddie" Butler and Joseph "Rex" Rault V. A family Memorial Service is planned for the spring in Duxbury, MA

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