Joan Elizabeth Ford

Joan Elizabeth Ford of Tucker, departed this life on July 6th, 2026 to be with the Lord. Born in Neponset, Massachusetts on September 24th, 1935. She lived a long and fruitful life full of much laughter and love. She graduated from Girl’s High School in 1954 and went to work for the phone company (MA Bell) as a directory assistance operator. In 1957, she married her husband, Edward Francis Ford. She reared four children and has been blessed with five grandchildren and 7 great-grandchildren.

After spending the first sixteen years of marriage in the Northeast, she moved to Tucker, GA. Joan returned to work with Southern Bell/Bell South and spent the next twenty years working as a fraudulent billing investigator.

Upon retirement, she devoted much of her time and energy at Holy Cross Catholic Church. Her love for Christ bore fruit in her work at the church where she served as an extraordinary minister and on the church council, volunteered with St. Martin de Porres, counted the Sunday collections and rarely missed a Street People production. She was awarded the Catholic Woman of the Year for the Atlanta Diocese. She loved Bingo (but never won as much as she wanted) and found her sweetest friendships among the ladies at Holy Cross.

She was an avid reader and kept a library of books in the trunk of her car to share with others. She followed UGA football, but seldom watched because she deemed herself bad luck as whenever she did watch, they would lose (obviously she hasn’t watched much in recent years). As a child of the depression, who grew up spending her Saturdays at the Adam’s Street Cinema, Joan loved movies and her encyclopedic knowledge of the actors of the mid-20th century remained intact with her last breath.

Joan was happiest when she was surrounded by her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. She instilled a love for family and for friends who were like family and her delight in hosting Thanksgiving and Christmas modeled that love year after year.

She was preceded in death by her parents William and Rose Donahue, her brothers Willaim, Joseph and Michael and her sisters Mary Rose, Jeannie, Patsy, Barbara, and her husband Edward.

She is survived by her children: Marie Palmer and her husband Steve of Hamilton Mill, GA; Kathleen Brandon and her husband Hal of Greensboro, GA; Tracy A. Ford of Madison, MS, and son Edward F. Ford and his wife Kristie; her grandchildren Christopher J. Palmer, Adam C. Ford, William G. Brandon, Mary Cathryn Cole, and Maxwell F. Brandon; and her seven great-grand children.

The family will receive friends beginning at 10:30 followed by a funeral mass at 11:00a.m. Thursday, July 9, 2026 at Holy Cross Catholic Church, 3773 Chamblee Tucker Road, Atlanta, GA 30341, 770-939-3501.

A luncheon will follow at Holy Cross. In lieu of flowers, contributions to Holy Cross Church (https://holycrossatlanta.org/electronic-giving) or to Our Lady of Perpetual Help Home

760 Pollard Blvd SW, Atlanta, GA 30315, in Joan’s memory are appreciated.