Joan grew up in Quincy MA, attended Archbishop Williams High School, and graduated from Emmanuel College in 1961 with a B.A. in English. Her teaching career spanned several locations around the world, but was primarily defined by her time teaching middle school children at Blessed Sacrament School in Washington D.C. On July 21, 1962, she married William J. Devine. They were an inseparable pair until his death in 2014.She loved her husband, her family, her neighborhood, tennis, dancing and never turned down an opportunity for a nap. She was quick to smile, had flawless grammar, and was sassy until the very end. She was born to the late Stephen J. Lynch and Rita M. Lynch in Boston, MA. Survivors include her daughter Deborah Lommen (Chris); and son, Chris Devine (Rosalyn); grandchildren- Mary Elisabeth, Nicholas, Catherine, and Jack Lommen, James and Anna Devine, and sister, Susan Ohlson, as well as the hundreds of students who graced her classroom. A private service will be held in Atlanta and a celebration of life event will occur later in the year in Washington D.C.
