Joan S. Lawson

Joan Spendlove Lawson, 88, of Paramus, formerly of Glen Rock, Ridgewood, and Mahwah, passed away on September 30, 2022, with family by her side. She was predeceased by her parents Herbert and Florence (nee Mayr) Spendlove and her loving husband of 54 years, Donald E. Lawson.

Devoted mother and mother-in-law to John M. Lawson and his wife Jennifer (Tolan) Lawson of Ridgewood, NJ, and James A. Lawson and his wife Elizabeth (Kelly) Lawson of Chevy Chase, MD. Loving grandmother to Daniel, Gregory, Katherine, Timothy and Jillian. Cherished sister-in-law of Suzanne and Walter Guzzo. Joan will also be missed by her niece and nephew Megan and Patrick Guzzo.

A New Jersey native, Joan was raised in Ho-Ho-Kus and she graduated from Ridgewood High School in 1952. Joan graduated from Fairleigh Dickinson University in 1956. She met her husband Donald E. Lawson while working for Citibank in New York City. They settled in Glen Rock and later Ridgewood after living in New York for eight years. After working at home to raise her two sons while pioneering the art of a for-profit “side-hustle,” Joan returned to work at Harold E. Clarke Real Estate in Ridgewood, and its successors Burgdorff Realty and Coldwell Banker. She worked for over 30 years in senior administrative roles, making countless friends, before retiring in 2017.

Joan was an avid animal lover and through the years especially enjoyed her Siamese and Tonkinese cats Herbie, Mickey, Teddy and Freddy. She was an accomplished baker as well - there was no better bundt! Joan was also a longtime parishioner of St. Gabriel the Archangel’s RC Church in Saddle River, NJ.

Kind but with a keen sense for decorum and authenticity, the worst name she ever called another person is “turkey.”  Her life can be defined by countless acts of discrete kindness and selflessness, manifested by gestures of giving, always private.   With no audience, she made and delivered cookies, lasagnas and cakes to various churches and charitable groups across Bergen County, NJ, as well as to every friend in need, and she made small donations to each good cause that was smart enough to ask her. 

Exceptionally crafty, she executed complicated projects with military precision, possessing a network of friends to help her complete arcane tasks such as obtaining knitting yarn colors discontinued in 1976.  She made her own wedding dress and has managed the ongoing maintenance and distribution to friends and family of a fragile antique bassinet in which she and most of her family once slept as a baby. 

If personal merit can be measured by the volume of unsolicited pastries and bagels delivered to you by friends, she is a first ballot Hall of Famer.  She brightened common moments for others lucky enough to know her. Not fancy and disinclined to “put on airs,” she focused every day of her life on things that matter.  She left Bucknell University after three years (later to graduate from FDU) to care for her sick mother who soon thereafter died of cancer.  She then devoted her whole life to others, focused on family and friends and how she could help them, culminating with the tireless and compassionate care she provided to her husband during his tragic battle with Alzheimer’s Disease. 

Her family and friends will always be grateful for the privilege of small moments with her; she could transform the drudgery of a DMV waiting room into a timeless moment as enjoyable and enriching as the fanciest vacation.  She never craved the center of attention but loved being in the middle of the fun, always laughing and mischievously participating in pranks.  She elevated the art of having an adult conversation with a cat, without losing substantive credibility. 

Sharp as a razor until her last day, she could cut through nonsense and suggest common sense answers to public problems that have long eluded PHDs in the arts or science of the topic.  When strangers encountered her in the Super Market or other mundane settings, they did not know that they were in the company of greatness, a titan of the little things that are actually the biggest things, and perhaps the kindest and most genuine person many of us will ever know.

Visiting Tuesday, October 4th from 4:00-8:00 PM at the Feeney Funeral Home, 232 Franklin Ave., Ridgewood. Funeral Mass Wednesday, October 5th at 10:00 AM at St. Gabriel the Archangel RC Church, 88 E. Saddle River Rd., Saddle River. Interment to follow at Maryrest Cemetery, Mahwah.

In lieu of flowers, donations made in Joan’s name to the Ramapo-Bergen Animal Refuge (rbari.org/donate) would be greatly appreciated.