On Thursday, February 19, 2026, Joan Mabelle LaPointe Flynn went home to be with her Lord and her beloved husband, Conrad Peter Flynn, affectionately known to Joan as Connie, who predeceased her 25 years ago.
Joan was born in Burlington, Vt., to Joseph W. LaPointe and Mabel G. LaPointe (Gauthier) on Valentine’s Day, 1933. Along with her sisters, Sandra Jane (Viele) and Joyce Grace (Cohen), she was raised and grew up on Charlotte Street in Burlington’s Five Sisters neighborhood. Joan attended Christ the King Grammar School and Cathedral High School, where she met Connie, the love of her life.
After high school she enrolled at the Bishop DeGosbriand Hospital School of Nursing in Burlington, which became the Jeanne Mance School of Nursing in 1953. Joan and Connie were married in Burlington in August 1953.
Joan’s career as a registered nurse began as a floor nurse at “the Bishop” and rose through various duties, eventually becoming scrub nurse in the operating room. Joan specialized in “scrubbing” in neurosurgery and ophthalmic surgery. Her nursing career took her “up the hill,” spanning the years of the Mary Fletcher Hospital, the Medical Center Hospital of Vermont and into Fletcher Allen. Joan also worked at the Central Vermont Hospital in Berlin when she and Connie lived in Montpelier.
Through nursing, her compassion led Joan to a lifetime as a volunteer with the American Red Cross, working blood drives well into her eighties. Joan was one of the founding members of the Champlain Echoes, remaining active for all 58 years of the chorus’ existence. She traveled to competitions in the U.S. and Canada.
Genealogy was also more than a hobby. As a member of the Vermont-Canadian Genealogical Society, Joan researched generations of family roots, including in Québec and Ireland. She also served as a member of the school board at Rice Memorial High School in South Burlington.
Joan is survived by her son, Joe Flynn, and his wife, Karen McCloud, of South Hero, Vt.; sister Sandra Viele and her husband, James, of Prescott, Ariz.; brother-in-law Sumner (Shimmy) Cohen of Milton, Vt.; granddaughter, Kathleen (Katie) Flynn of Mystic, Conn.; grandson Harrison Flynn and his wife, Alexis, of Grand Isle, Vt.; grandson Nigel Flynn and his wife, Ilish, of Calgary, Alberta; and great-granddaughters, Piper, Isla and Murphy. She was predeceased by her parents, Joe and Mabel; her sister Joyce; and many relatives.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Friday, February 27, 2026, 11 a.m., at Holy Family Church in Essex Junction. Burial will follow in Resurrection Park Cemetery in South Burlington.
The family wishes to recognize and thank the dedicated and caring staff at Green Mountain Nursing House, the nurses and doctors at the University of Vermont Medical Center, and the amazing people at the McClure Miller Respite House, who provided unending compassion and care in Joan’s last days.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a gift to the McClure Miller Respite House, 3113 Roosevelt Hwy., Colchester, VT 05446.
Arrangements are in care of LaVigne Funeral Home in Winooski. To send condolences to her family, please visit vtfuneralhomes.com.
This article appears in The Media Issue • 2026.
Joe, I am so sorry to learn of Joan’s passing. I used to sing in the Champlain Echos with her. Sadly, the last time I saw her was at Conrad’s wake. Her sister Sandra and I were good friends (we were in one another’s weddings). I fondly remember spending time at their home in Burlington although Joan and Conrad were married by this time and you were still a baby.
She was a strong support for THE Former Alan Irwin. And us Techs in ophthalmology Louise Sylvester, Kelly Lyman, and Linda Ritchie. Made out OR days uncomplicated.
Oh, my! I first met Joanne when I started out as an orderly in the Or in the 70’s. She had so much fun scrubbing it was one of the reasons I myself became a Scrub Tech. I heard her sing with the Champlain Echos, as well as her being at the Red Cross, where my Aunt was the head nurse and made me donate often! She always had a smile and lifted everyone’s spirit. May she Rest in Peace.