Joan Karen Gilhooly

and grew up in Roosevelt. She later made her home in both Surprise, AZ and Valrico, Florida

Joan attended Queen of the Most Holy Rosary for elementary school and Dominican Commercial for high school, building a foundation that would be reflected throughout a life marked by steady purpose, honest effort, and thoughtful care for others.

Her working life was defined by dedication and diligence. She worked at Brookhaven National Lab for seven years and later served for eleven years in the Chancellor’s Office IT department with the Cal State University System. She retired in 2007, closing a career shaped by hard work, reliability, and the quiet strength of someone others could count on.

In retirement, Joan embraced the world with courage and curiosity, traveling widely and achieving over 500 nights on Holland America. Whether cruising, camping, sightseeing, or simply enjoying the beach, she enjoyed life to the fullest. She enjoyed traveling, trips to the casino, and loved seafood. Joan was also extremely proud of her Irish heritage.

Joan was a devoted spouse to Lawrence L. Bedell and a deeply cherished mother to Michele Bedell-Adling (sp) Dan Adling, Wendy Goetschius, Rob Goetschius, Amy Goetschius-Hubbel (sp) Mikel Hubbel, Lisa Brown (sp) Kevin Brown, Joseph Bedell, and Kelly Sebourn (sp) Jesse Sebourn. She was a beloved grandmother to Dylan Sebourn (sp) Dani Sebourn, Tyler Adling, Joshua Werran, Andrew Sebourn, and Caitlin Hubbel. Family was at the center of Joan’s life, and her loyal presence, patient listening, and selfless love were gifts that inspired those closest to her

Joan was a beautiful woman who lived a beautiful and fulfilling life. She loved her family deeply and treasured every moment spent with them. Joan wanted to save the world - an expression of her generous heart and spirit that inspired others.

A true world traveler who loved to cruise, Joan embraced life and all the adventures it had to offer. She was deeply loved by her family and friends and will be missed more than words can express. Her beautiful memory, generous spirit, and the love she shared with so many will live on in all of us.

The family kindly requests that, in lieu of flowers, donations are made in Joan K. Gilhooly's memory to Saint Jude Children’s Research Hospital (Please see Donations Link below) or to a charity of your choice. Thank you for honoring Joan's memory in this meaningful way.

Eulogy for Joan K Gilhooly

"Not flesh of my flesh, Nor bone of my bone, But miraculously my own. Never forget for a single minute—You didn’t grow under my heart, but in it."

When I read those words, I think of Mom and all of us kids. Because, those words fit every single one of us.

There are seven of us kids, and like any family, we had our ups and our downs. We laughed, we argued, we drove each other crazy, and we made memories that we will carry forever. But through every high and every low, and we all had our share of lows, there was one thing we never had to question—Mom loved us. Even when it was hard to love us, she did.

She loved each and every one of us with her whole heart and soul. There was never a doubt that we were hers, and that she would do anything for us.

Mom lived life to the fullest. She was always doing something, always making a memory, and usually taking pictures along the way.

She played a catcher in softball at the lab because she couldn’t play anything else. I get my athletic prowess from her! She sprained her ankle at Frost Valley and anywhere else she could. I also get my grace from her. She took more pictures of her family than any of us probably realized at the time. Now, don’t let all the pictures around you fool you because it was tough finding pictures of mom. She hated being photographed. But, we have some and now, those pictures mean more than we could have ever imagined.

Mom loved to travel. I remember when we were young and she and Dad took their first trip together to Sandals in Jamaica. She was so thrilled and ecstatic. At the time, it was just Mom getting excited for vacation. But looking back, I realize how much she loved having something to look forward to and how much she loved experiencing life.

And Mom and Dad certainly experienced life together.

They traveled all over the world together. Mom loved sightseeing and seeing places she had never seen before and places she has already been to. She loved whale watching and watching dolphins play. She loved being at the beach, listening to the waves. She loved watching a good thunder and lightning storm.

She found joy in the big adventures, but she also found it in the little things.

Later in life, some of my favorite memories are of Mom and Caitlin sitting together on the couch watching Hallmark Christmas movies together. It was simple. Nothing extraordinary was happening. But those are the moments that become extraordinary when you realize you don’t get them forever.

Mom loved her grandchildren so much. She loved hearing what they were doing, what they were interested in, what was happening at school, and all the little details of their lives. She was proud of them, and she wanted to be part of their lives for as long as she could. In the hospital, she told the nurse that she didn’t have enough grandchildren…….Kelly, Jesse, get on that!

I think that’s what Mom really wanted—to be surrounded by her family, to know what was going on in our lives, to make memories, and to love us.

And she did that.

She gave us a lifetime of memories. Some are big—trips, adventures, vacations and celebrations. Others are small—sitting on the couch, looking through pictures, talking, laughing, or just being together.

Those are the memories we will hold onto now.

Because losing Mom leaves a space in our lives that can never truly be filled. There will be moments when we will instinctively want to call her, tell her something, show her a picture, or hear what she thinks. And then we’ll remember that she’s not there.

That will hurt.

But I hope that, with time, the sadness will make room for gratitude.

Gratitude that we got to have her.

Gratitude for the life she lived.

Gratitude for the adventures, the laughter, the pictures, the holidays, the trips, the stories, and all the ordinary moments that we didn’t know would one day become some of our most precious memories.

Mom, you were not flesh of our flesh or bone of our bone.

But you were miraculously our own.

You grew in our hearts, and you will stay there forever.

We love you, Mom.

And we will miss you for the rest of our lives.

Love, your seven kids