Nancy Ellen Joy

Nancy was born on March 26, 1943 at Emerson Hospital in Concord, MA to Murray T. and Doris (Lynah) Potter.

She attended local schools and graduated from Lexington High School in 1961. Following graduation, she worked at New England Wheel and in 1963 she married and moved to Portland where she started her family. She remained a stay at home mom until the mid-1970’s when she started working as a typist at Morse, Payson and Noyes, advancing to the Director of IT. After leaving Morse, Payson and Noyes in the late 1980’s, Nancy was employed by Harte systems and Swett and Crawford Insurance. For many years prior to retirement, she worked as a part-time receptionist at Averill Insurance.

Nancy was an avid reader and enjoyed spending many hours outside in the shade reading. She enjoyed several summers renting a beach house with her father in Pine Point. Her favorite saying when times were hard was ‘life’s a beach,’ which would bring her mind back to better thoughts.

She enjoyed dinners out with friends, playing scrabble and collecting hummels. She relished family time and especially the time she spent with her five grandchildren, whether it be watching their sporting events or attending a cook-out, she was always happy when they were near.

Nancy is survived by her three children, Nancy A. (Joy) Burton and her husband Michael of Portland, Kevin M. Joy and his longtime companion, Juliann Simonton of Scarborough and Kathleen M. Joy of Westbrook; her five grandchildren, Ashley, Zachary, Kaitlyn, Abigail and Daniel; her “hairy” grandchildren, Mick, Marley and Luna. Her two brothers, Murray (Ray) and Gail Potter of Templeton, MA, and Laurence and Rosalie Potter of Reading, MA; her sister, Susan (Potter) and Tom Damkowitch of Lexington, MA; her in-laws John and Jean Joy of Portland; lifelong friends Bob and Gail Richards and several nieces, nephews, and other lifelong friends.

Friends may call from 4-7 p.m. Tuesday, January 2, 2017 at Jones, Rich and Barnes Funeral Home 199 Woodford St. Portland, ME. At 6 p.m. A Celebration of Nancy’s Life will be conducted, where Nancy’s friends and family will gather and share stories about Nancy’s life. Honoring Nancy’s wishes, her inurnment will be private and held at a later date.

Please visit www.jonesrichandbarnes.com to sign Nancy's online guest book.