WOODBRIDGE, VA – Joyce (Morrissey) Donohue, 84, (1940-2024) died Friday, March 1st, 2024, at Sentara Hospital after a sudden illness. Joyce was born on January 27th, 1940, the first child of Richard and Anna (Joyce) Morrissey. She attended Saint Mary’s Elementary and High School and graduated from Framingham State College. She furthered her education at the University of Massachusetts (Amherst) and the University of New Hampshire, where she received her Ph.D. in Chemistry.
Family was the essence of Joyce’s life. Family was her love, her pride, her joy. Whether it was her children, grandchildren, siblings, parents, cousins, etc., Joyce valued every member of her family and did everything within her power to help them. Her devotion to her family was infinite. Just as much as she loved her family, Joyce loved teaching. Dedicating over 50 years of her life to education, she taught at West Springfield High School and Framingham State, before teaching Biochemistry and Food Nutrition at Northern Virginia Community College. She worked for many years at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Washington, DC. She always valued the importance of education and never stopped on her journey of learning and discovering.
Throughout her life, Joyce had a captivation with wildflowers. They never ceased to amaze her, and she would always be excited to venture into the woods and search for the treasure of rare wildflowers.
Joyce leaves behind her children Maura Donohue and her husband Vijayasurian Easwaran of Cincinnati, OH; John T. Donohue and his wife Christina Donohue of Chesapeake, VA; Sean R. Donohue of Woodbridge, VA; and Eric P. Donohue of Alexandria, VA.
She was predeceased by her parents, her sister Dona Kane, and her grandchildren Caroiliann Lavares and Brendan Patrick Donohue.
She is survived by her siblings: Sr. Jane Morrissey of Springfield, MA; Anne Cressotti and her husband Frank of Southampton, MA; Richard Morrissey and his wife Pamela of West Springfield, MA; Sheila Spencer and her husband Steve of Leesburg, FL; and Mary Chris Cressotti and her husband Karl of Cheshire, CT. Joyce also leaves behind her grandchildren, John, Aoife, Aodhan, Kaveri, and Surya, as well as numerous nieces and nephews.
Family and friends will gather for her funeral on Friday, March 8th, 2024, at 9 a.m. from the Firtion Adams Funeral Service, 76 Broad Street, Westfield followed by a Mass at 10 a.m. in St. Mary’s Church, Bartlett Street, Westfield, with burial to follow in St. Mary’s Cemetery, Southampton Road. Visiting hours will be held on Thursday, March 7th, 2024 from 4-7 p.m. in the funeral home. Memorial contributions can be made to either the Seven for 57’ Scholarship or the Anna and Richard Morrissey Scholarship at St. Mary’s High School, 27 Bartlett Street, Westfield, MA. www.firtionadams.com
