Hoosick Falls – Joan A. (Duket) Bohmer, 77, born December 24, 1932, in Northumberland, NY, to Harry B. Duket and Marion (Jakeway), passed away on November 15, 2010, at the Hoosick Falls Health Center, Hoosick Falls, NY, after a long illness.
Joan graduated from Greenwich Central School in 1951. She was captain of the cheerleading squad and majorette team. She radiated school spirit and was runner up for prom queen. After graduating, Joan worked as a clerk at United Board and Carton.
While spending time at Lake Lauderdale one summer, she fell in love with a young man’s photograph. She would soon learn this wonderful boy was William H. Bohmer from Hoosick Falls. They married October 24, 1953, and made their home in Hoosick Falls. They raised five children in their warm, loving home.
Joan was an amazing homemaker who always put her family first. The neighborhood kids loved her and every morning when she waved to the school bus, everyone waved back. There was always something baking when the children arrived home from school, and dinner was always ready at 5:30 pm. Their house was fully decorated for every holiday. Joan and Bill’s Halloween parties were legendary in the 1960s. She loved to sing and had a beautiful voice. She also had a passion for dancing, ice and roller skating, bowling, gardening, feeding her birds and hummingbirds, collecting snowmen, doing jigsaw puzzles, playing card games and cheering on the NY Yankees, especially Derek Jeter. Her greatest gift was her sense of humor, her laughter and her positive outlook on life.
When her children were mostly grown, she went to work as a dental assistant and loved interacting with people. She always had a smile and a kind word for everyone, even when simply standing in a grocery line. She had a special way of brightening the days of others. Although she loved being in her home the best, she and Bill traveled across country and to the Bahamas, Florida, South Carolina and Nova Scotia.
Joan was an active member in the Women’s Elks Auxiliary. She and her friends were the hit of entertainment with their comical singing and dancing.
Joan joins her beloved husband, Bill, who died in June 2008. She is survived by two daughters, Kathleen and husband Fred George of Williamstown, MA, and Julie and husband Ray Crosier of North Bennington, VT, three sons, Scott and Cathy Jo, William and wife Sue and Kris and wife Melissa, all of Hoosick Falls. Her sister, Alma Filer and husband Bill of Greenwich, NY, ten grandchildren, one step-grandchild, one great-grandson, several nieces and nephews, her little dog, Cookie, and extended family also survive. Besides her husband and parents, she is pre-deceased by two brothers, Robert and Steven Duket, and her cat of nineteen years, Crackers.
The family would like to extend a special thank you to her many wonderful caregivers who loved her like she was their own mother for the past two and a half years while she lived at home and also to the Health Center staff who kept her feeling loved, safe and comfortable.
Because the holiday season was so special to Joan, in lieu of flowers, please make a donation in her memory to your local food pantry or Toys for Tots.
The Mahar Funeral Home, 43 Main Street in Hoosick Falls is handling the arrangements. A small graveside service will be held at Saratoga National Cemetery in Schuylerville, NY, on Friday, November 19, at 12 pm. A Celebration of Joan’s life will be held on Sunday, December 12, at the Hoosick Falls Fire House from 2 to 4 pm.