Joan Marie Toohey

Joan Marie Toohey, 81, of Marlborough, MA, passed away peacefully, surrounded by family, on January 15, 2025, at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester, MA, following a short illness.
The eldest of four children, Joan was born on November 08, 1943, in Waynesboro, PA, to the late Joseph A. and Therese F. (Krajsa) Mihalcik. She grew up in Allentown, PA, where she graduated from Central Catholic High School before earning her bachelor's degree in Music Education at Seton Hill University in Greensburg, PA. It was graduate school that brought Joan to Massachusetts, where she earned her master's degree in Music at Boston University.
Joan was hired into the Marlborough Public School System as a junior high music teacher where she met her loving husband of over fifty-three years, James (Jim) F Toohey, who was an Assistant Principal at the school. Soon after marriage, Joan and Jim went on to have family. Joan paused her teaching career and spent over ten years as a homemaker and full-time mother to their three children, Danny, Ann, and Joey.
During this time, Joan still maintained her passion for music and teaching others. She started a part-time piano lesson business, she sang soprano in the Immaculate Conception Church Choir, and she founded and directed the Marlborough Jr. Women's Club Chorus as well as an accompanying holiday children's chorus. Additionally, Joan became actively involved with the Marlborough Cultural Affairs office, performing and serving as the musical director for numerous community theater performances in the 70s and 80s. She also founded and directed the Marlborough Community Chorus for several years.
In the mid-80s, Joan returned to work in the Marlborough school system. She taught for a few years at the Kane Elementary School and then moved to the Marlborough High School where she founded the Marlborough High School Show Choir and reestablished the annual spring musical. Joan was eventually named the Music Coordinator of Marlborough Public Schools and held that position until her retirement in 2004.
Joan enjoyed her retirement years with Jim, spending their winters in Florida and summers in York Beach, ME and Wildwood, NJ. She liked reading, cross-stitching, doing the daily crossword, attending musical theater, playing bridge, and sunbathing by the pool or on the beach. Joan valued family and friendships dearly. She never missed the annual Christmas and summer family reunions, and she always tried to keep in touch with old friends. Joan also believed in the importance of keeping tradition, and she took pride in cooking the Slovak recipes passed down from her parents.
Joan is survived by her devoted husband, Jim; her children Daniel (Melissa) Toohey, Ann (Jeff) Sisson, and Joseph; her six grandchildren; her three siblings; and many cherished nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.
Services for Joan will be private. Slattery Funeral Home, Inc., 40 Pleasant Street, MA 01752 is handling arrangements.
In lieu of flowers, please consider honoring Joan's memory by making a donation in her name to your favorite charity.
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