Joanne Mary (MacDonald) Casella

Of Sherborn and formerly of the Back Bay and Brighton passed away peacefully surrounded by her family on May 13, 2019 after a courageous battle with cancer. Joanne was born on May 8, 1942 to Mary (Kapantis) and John Macdonald.

She grew up in Boston’s Back Bay and was educated in Boston Public Schools until High School when she moved to Brighton and attended St. Columbkille High. In high school she met the love of her life, her dear husband, Dennis, to whom she was married for 52 years. After graduating from high school Joanne attended Northeastern University where she earned both a Bachelor and Master of Science degree. Joanne began working at the New England Deaconess hospital in the laboratory as a co-op student and remained employed there, and after the hospital merger, at Beth Israel Deaconess, for 51 years. At the Deaconess she began as a medical technologist and worked her way up to becoming the Vice President of Pathology and at Beth Israel Deaconess the Administrative Leader of the Dept. of Medicine. Joanne enjoyed traveling extensively with trips to China, Fiji, the Netherlands, England, Italy, France, Greece and Aruba. In addition to traveling outside of the US, Joanne especially loved spending time on Cape Cod at her home on Scraggy Neck and in Maine at her home on Great Pond.

Joanne is survived by her husband, Dennis, daughter Lisa Casella Welsh, son-in-law Brian Welsh and beautiful granddaughters, Casey and Haley Welsh, whom she loved and adored with all her heart. She is also survived by her best friend of 63 years Arlene Chaplin, cousin Tess Angelis, cousin Vincent D’Agostino, dear niece Donna (D’Agostino) Bedigan and nephew John D’Agostino.

Funeral from the John Everett & Sons Funeral Home 4 Park Street NATICK COMMON Friday May 17th at 9am.  Followed by a Funeral Mass in St. Theresa of Lisieux 35 South Main St Sherborn at 10am. Relatives and friends are kindly invited to attend. Burial immediately following at Pine Hill Cemetery, Sherborn.  Visiting Hours Thursday May 16th from 4-8 pm in the funeral home.

Joanne and her family wish to thank her treatment team at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital and especially her hospice caregivers who treated her so kindly at the end of her life. For those wishing to make donations in Joanne’s memory, they may be made to the Dr. Robert Moellering Infectious Disease Fellowship Fund at the Development Office, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center 330 Brookline Ave Boston, MA 02215 Medical Center or The Good Shepherd Community Care at www.gscommunitycare.org. Joanne will always be remembered as a kind, brilliant, and generous woman - everyone who ever met her is better for having known her. 

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