It was Senior Seminar Day in 1971 and the topic of one of the sessions was Scientology. Jonee and I heard the pitch and were awestruck. In our budding search for the meaning of life, we thought the answer would be here. We left directly from school to the Scientology center in downtown Boston. Once there, we were placed in separate rooms with a machine and attachments looking suspiciously like soup cans. If we held onto the cans, we were encouraged to believe, the machine could tell how close we were to becoming “Clear.” This so-called ideal state of being was a hard sell, even for us. We rolled our eyes on the way out and never went back.
Yet Jonee never gave up the search. She found genuine meaning in the service of others working for the U. S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Assignments took her around the world to support vulnerable populations. One such posting found her in Africa helping children make “memory” baskets. That way the children would have mementos of their mothers who were dying from HIV.
Notwithstanding her service in the USAID, Jonee’s family was at the core of her life’s meaning. She adored her husband, whom she met in Jamaica. She was devoted to her two gifted and caring daughters, one of whom is following in her mother’s footsteps in international development and education policy. Jonee’s sister was also her best friend.
The last time I was with Jonee was a mini-reunion January 2009 in Chicago. The group also included Roberta Farrell, Susan Scully and Jane Fangmann White. It had been more than 30 years since any of us had seen her. Nevertheless, we didn’t miss a beat. We remembered names, events and places we thought we’d forgotten. We laughed until we risked internal organ injury. We hugged for a lifetime.
Some time later, we learned Jonee had participated in an N.I.H. clinical trial for cancer research. How so like her to contribute to the lives of others as she must have considered the end of her own. She’d never said a word about being ill; her final gift, a less painful goodbye. Jonee died September 7, 2009. She left us with a basket full of memories.
Susan, what a beautiful tribute to Jonee. I remember her so fondly as such a very special person. She had the warmest smile, a brilliant mind and a terrific sense of humor! It is no surprise to hear of her many life accompishments and service to others.
Susan Gerhardt (Sanders)
Joann (Jonee) Feldman LawrenceIt was Senior Seminar Day in 1971 and the topic of one of the sessions was Scientology. Jonee and I heard the pitch and were awestruck. In our budding search for the meaning of life, we thought the answer would be here. We left directly from school to the Scientology center in downtown Boston. Once there, we were placed in separate rooms with a machine and attachments looking suspiciously like soup cans. If we held onto the cans, we were encouraged to believe, the machine could tell how close we were to becoming “Clear.” This so-called ideal state of being was a hard sell, even for us. We rolled our eyes on the way out and never went back.
Yet Jonee never gave up the search. She found genuine meaning in the service of others working for the U. S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Assignments took her around the world to support vulnerable populations. One such posting found her in Africa helping children make “memory” baskets. That way the children would have mementos of their mothers who were dying from HIV.
Notwithstanding her service in the USAID, Jonee’s family was at the core of her life’s meaning. She adored her husband, whom she met in Jamaica. She was devoted to her two gifted and caring daughters, one of whom is following in her mother’s footsteps in international development and education policy. Jonee’s sister was also her best friend.
The last time I was with Jonee was a mini-reunion January 2009 in Chicago. The group also included Roberta Farrell, Susan Scully and Jane Fangmann White. It had been more than 30 years since any of us had seen her. Nevertheless, we didn’t miss a beat. We remembered names, events and places we thought we’d forgotten. We laughed until we risked internal organ injury. We hugged for a lifetime.
Some time later, we learned Jonee had participated in an N.I.H. clinical trial for cancer research. How so like her to contribute to the lives of others as she must have considered the end of her own. She’d never said a word about being ill; her final gift, a less painful goodbye. Jonee died September 7, 2009. She left us with a basket full of memories.
Amy Sandler (Clevenger)
Susan, what a beautiful tribute to Jonee. I remember her so fondly as such a very special person. She had the warmest smile, a brilliant mind and a terrific sense of humor! It is no surprise to hear of her many life accompishments and service to others.