Joyce Ann (Baker) Burzillo
Of Wellesley, August 11, 1936 – April 6, 2026. Died at her home after a tremendous life, followed by a lengthy battle with Alzheimer’s. Predeceased by her husband Gerald J. Burzillo, her parents Charles Baker and Elizabeth (McKay) Baker, her twin sister Jean Baker, and her brother in law Ralph Anderson.
Born in Brighton, she grew up in Oak Square and then moved to Watertown where she graduated from Watertown High School in 1954. She then attended Framingham State Teachers College where she received her bachelor’s degree and later two master’s degrees in education. She worked at the Pillar House in Wellesley and Howard Johnson’s in Allston to put herself through school. Gerald J. Burzillo, then serving in the National Guard and studying law at BC, kept “sitting in her section” until she finally spoke to him.
They married and moved to Wellesley because, as Joyce liked to say, it was on the “commuter rail.” There they raised their three children, and Joyce remained there for the rest of her life.
They enjoyed family time together, traveling abroad with Evelyn and Ralph, and playing tennis, but mostly they both worked very hard, grateful for their good fortune in life, appreciating all they had.
Joyce was an educator, first in Roxbury, then in Brookline, and finally in Southboro, MA, where she spent thirty-plus years as a classroom teacher and a reading specialist. She loved her calling and always said: “it’s so important for children to know how to read. It builds their confidence and that is so important for success in life.” Joyce was always so positive and had good things to say. She was the first one to boast about the accomplishments of others and was the first one there with food and support in good times and bad.
After losing Gerry, who died at the age of 58, Joyce soldiered on. She was fiercely independent and determined to make a good life. Summers in York, ME with her children and grandchildren, Sunday dinners with her family, and reading and playing games with her grandchildren, they were an important part of her daily life. She was an incredibly versatile cook, who was comfortable cooking any type of cuisine. Her soups, desserts, Peking Duck, and chicken piccata were the stuff of legends. Joyce used her cooking to bring people together. She kept working in Southboro, trying to retire twice but going back until finally retiring in her seventies and focusing on bridge and volunteering. She had a tremendous time with “the bridge ladies,” traveling in the U.S. and abroad. Her biggest disappointment in life was that none of her children or grandchildren were good bridge players.
Joyce was always vibrant, positive, and fierce but also a gentle soul. Her last few years were difficult, as she was increasingly challenged to process the world around her; still she would nevertheless smile and thank everyone, difficult as it was for her to find the words.
Joyce leaves her three children David (Sarah) of Mountain View, CA; Sandra Joiner (William) of Natick, MA; and Christine Nilson of Needham, MA; her sister’s partner William Pride of York, ME; her sister-in-law Evelyn Anderson of Medford, MA; her niece Gail Anderson of London. England; and eight grandchildren: Anna, Suzanne, and Maria Burzillo; Ben and Alyssa Joiner; and Luke, Johanna, and George Nilson; and one great granddaughter, Sophia Haley. She also leaves behind extended family, “the bridge ladies,” and many friends and colleagues.
Visitation at the George F. Doherty & Sons Funeral Home, 477 Washington St. Wellesley, on Sunday, April 12, from 5-7pm and Monday, April 13, 9-10am followed by a funeral service in the funeral home at 10am. Relatives and friends kindly invited. Interment Woodlawn Cemetery, Wellesley.