Joan R. Thompson

Joan R. Thompson, author of eight published books including Marblehead, Parker’s Island and Interesting Times died at the age of 67 on Friday, March 12th, 2010 after a long and courageous battle with brain cancer. Mrs. Thompson was born in Boston, MA, the daughter of the late Ralph F. and Virginia B. Phillipps. She grew up in Melrose and summered in Ipswich. After attending Melrose High School, Mrs. Thompson graduated in 1964 from Colby College as a French major. While at Colby, she was active in the college theater group, The Powder & Wig. She appeared in Mac the Knife, Guys and Dolls, The Threepenny Opera and Time of Your Life.

Mrs. Thompson was also a member of the modern dance club, student government, the Glee Club and was the head of the Colbyettes. The Colbyettes were an all female singing group that performed at many New England colleges. While under her leadership, the Colbyettes made a record which they sold at their many concerts.

During college, she became active in the civil rights movement. She resisted the then discriminatory practices of her sorority resulting in her resignation in protest. Mrs. Thompson continued her active role in the civil rights movement with the Northern Student Movement marching in Boston, Washington, D.C. and several other cities. As an adjunct to the civil rights movement Mrs. Thompson became active in politics by being a member of the Marblehead Democratic Town Committee and subsequently becoming a delegate to several Democratic State Conventions.

Upon graduating from Colby Mrs. Thompson worked in an administrative position at Harvard University. Soon thereafter she moved from Cambridge to Marblehead where she began her family with her husband Stephen W. A. Thompson. While her two sons were still young, she wanted to start an occupation that allowed her to be at home while caring for her children. She decided that writing, which was a long time passion, would be a perfect profession. Her first novel was Marblehead followed by Parker’s Island and Interesting Times, all published by St. Martins Press. Mrs. Thompson went on to write five more novels for young adults: The Mudpack and Me, The Terrible Turnoff and Me and the Lucy Russell Centerstage series: Lucy in the Wings, Stardom and Stinkwater and The Starstruck Summer. These were published by Pocketbooks, a division of Simon & Schuster and Avon Books.

As a woman of many talents, she played the guitar and played the piano where she had a great love of show tunes and entertaining her guests with song. She was also an avid reader of books, a tennis player, a boater, a gardener and painter. Mrs. Thompson was also known as an excellent cook inspired, in her early days, by Julia Child as were so many others.

Her family describes her as an adventurer where she and her husband traveled to France, Australia, New Zealand, Africa, England, Germany and many other locales.

In addition to her husband Stephen W. A. Thompson, Mrs. Thompson leaves her son Christopher P. Thompson and his wife Meryl and their two children Aidan and Ryan of Marblehead and her son Andrew A. Thompson and his wife Nichole and their two children Lilah and Sam of Needham. She is also survived by her sister Brenda P. Gibbons and her husband Robert of Washington, NC, her step sister Pamela Quinlan of Heidelberg, Germany as well as three nieces and a nephew.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Hospice of the North Shore (www.hns.org, 75 Sylvan Street, Suite B-102, Danvers, MA 01923).

In lieu of services, a day of remembrance for family and friends will be held at a future date.