Joan B Ronayne, daughter of Joan and Joseph Ronayne, sister to Joseph Ronayne, Jr. and his wife Mireya Nadal-Vicens and aunt to their daughter Mikayla Ronayne-Nadal.
She passed away peacefully in her sleep after a long illness. Joan was a keen intellect who had worked in business, management consulting and investment banking before settling in at the Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard Business School where she helped students in her role as a career consultant to establish their own careers.
Joan suffered an accident while at home in August 2020 which left her paralyzed. Despite the medical difficulties, the accident did not affect her intellect or change her personality. Despite her decreased mobility, Joan brought together different communities of friends and even continued to venture forth out into the world.
She will be missed by her friends at HBS, her neighbors and community from her time in Newton, her caretakers at The Reservoir in Marlborough, her many friends at the First Unitarian Universalist Society in Newton, her brother and many, many cousins.
Visiting hours will be held at the George F. Doherty & Sons Funeral Home, 1305 Highland Ave, Needham on Wednesday, April 16th, from 4-7 pm. A service of blessing will be at St. Joseph’s Church, 1382 Highland Ave, Needham on Thursday, April 17th at 10am, followed by burial at St Mary’s Cemetery, Needham. A memorial celebration of Joan’s life is planned for later this year at the First Unitarian Universalist Society in Newton. All are welcome to any and all of the above events.