On behalf of Joan's family, her loving husband Ian her children Melanie, Andrew, Jason and their partners Alan and Clare and her Grandchildren Kyle and Saoirse her partner Lawrence. 

On the 7th August Joan's son Andrew who many of you may know as panda will be doing a walk in memory of Joan from Newbury to Hungerford. Any donations will be greatly appreciated and will be going directly to the Sue Ryder Duchess of Kent hospice.

The charity he has chosen to raise funds for is the Duchess of Kent hospice in reading this is because when Joan got her diagnosis of motor neurons disease they provided all the support and care that Joan needed and also were a fantastic support to her family throughout. Joan took a shine to one of the carers Lucy and always looked forward to her visits. In Andrew's words they went above and beyond to help make life that much easier for Joan and even now after the loss of Joan they continue to support Joan's husband Ian. 

Below is the Eulogy for you to take a read about Joan's life.

Eulogy for Joan Margaret Johnston (nee Goodfellow)

16th February
 1944 – 26th April
 2021

In Newbury, Joan
 was a ‘war time’ baby born to parents
 Percy and Lavinia who had
 relocated from Southampton after theWWII ‘bombing’
 of Vickers factory where Percy was employed. Her elder brothers Donald and
 Peter spent much of those war years as evacuees in Wales. Joan spent her early childhood, living at
 Charter Close with her family who shared many happy memories with their good
 friends and neighboursthe
 Barratt family. Unexpectedly,
 Joan’s father died when she was eight years old. Joan first attended
 Winchcombe School and later Shaw House for girls where she enjoyed studying History. The
 friends made in early
 childhood, remained with her into adulthood,
 such as Mary, Jan, Sue and many more besides. Joan was a shy girl who found
 a new sense of freedom and independence when she owned her first bicycle.She would
 spend many a summers day cycling for miles with her friends and having adventures just as the characters did in her favourite Enid Blyton books.

On special occasions or
 family visits Joan she
 would relish the opportunity of visiting a tearoom and eating as many cream cakes as she could, this was considered such a treat for her! For Joan,
 had a sweet tooth and would cycle home at speed to make a strawberry blancmange with her mother which
 would be enjoyed, just as soon as it was set! The
 family now living on Cresswell Road and upon leaving
 Shaw House School,
 her first full time job was at AWE Aldermaston. Passing
 her driving test first time, Joan loved
 the independence of being able to drive and would often drive her friends in
 her cherished Mini Cooper. Joan’s early
 interests in music wascreated
 from her visits to ‘the pictures’ in the 1950’s to see Rock around the Clock and Jail House Rock. Her
 early taste in music was heavily influenced by all things Motown.

In the early 1970’s she
 met a man named Ian Johnston in The Castle public house, Newbury with whom she would share the next fifty years with. Ian and Joan were
 married at St Mary’s Church at Shaw on
 6th November 1971.
 Joan and Ian became parents to Melanie, Andrew and Jason and the family all lived at Ewing Way. Following the death of her mother, Joan began working part-time as a Florist delivery
 driver. This role allowed her children to accompany her. Some lasting memories were made during this time, Jason
 accompanied her most days and they both enjoyed visits to the Empire Café to buy supplies for the
 day. During school holidays, Melanie and Andrew enjoyed spending time with them, though not so much the transport being
 a Renault
 4 van which always smelt of jam donuts and chrysanthemum’s! Whilst travelling to make deliveries they
 would sing-along to songs such as Que Sera, Sera and Don’t
 Dilly Dally on the Way. In
 the 1980’s she began working at Marks and Spencer’s and
 later returning to working
 at AWE Aldermaston prior to, Thatcham
 MOD Depot and MOD
 Police at Aldermaston. After retirement, she worked part-time at Tesco. 

Joan warmly
 welcomed her
 son in law Alan into the family and she later thrilled at being ‘Nannie’
 to Saoirse in 1998 and Kyle in 2000. Joan
 had great compassion for others and enjoyed spending
 time with friend Dotty, keeping in touch with old friends and family even if only
 able to by way of a letter or Christmas
 card. Retirement offered the opportunity for Joan and Ian to spend holidays either abroad or visiting family in Great Yarmouth.
 Joan was well known and liked in her neighbourhood due to her caring nature of wanting to help others. Whilst
 the year 2020 will become infamous due to the global pandemic, this year was also hugely significant for Joan and her loved ones with the devastating news
 of a diagnosis of Motor Neurone Disease.

Joan
 approached this by focussing on what she could do, rather than what she couldn’t and made
 one final visit to Great Yarmouth for a family holiday. Joan enjoyed
 watching various sports on television with
 Ian, which included horse-racing and football. Joan
 was very proud of all her
 family, and
 all theirachievements and
 frequently would say, ‘I
 wouldn’t of, been
 able to do that …’. However, the reason
 that they were all able to succeed or strive
 to do their best in
 their endeavours was because of her love and support. Joan
 had a very positive outlook to life and by saying, there’s always ‘hope’.
 By looking forward and remaining positive was
 something shestrongly believed in. To us, her Chicks she would often
 say ‘keep your pecker up’ during difficult times.
 Joan, Mum and Nannie we will always love you

The room someone dies in doesn't have to be a sombre place. It can be full of music, much-loved pets, or the people who mean the most. Wherever someone spends their final days, you can help give them a better goodbye, by supporting Sue Ryder Duchess of Kent today. We'll handle the scary stuff, taking the pain, stress, and uncertainty away. This leaves families free to focus on what's really important love. So please, send a gift today, and help fill the room with love.Of course, love can come with tears, laughter, memories and more. There are many ways to say goodbye. With your help, we'll find out what's best for a family and fill the room with love.With many health conditions going untreated over the last year, we believe more people will need our care in the coming months. And 3 in 4 people would prefer to die at home or in a hospice. So your support really is more important than ever.