Joan Shrallow

New London — Joan Beckwith Shrallow, 95, of New London passed away peacefully April 9, 2021, at New London Rehabilitation and Care of Waterford, surrounded by her family. She was born June 29, 1925, to Arthur Mortimer Beckwith and Laurette Gilmore Beckwith at Lawrence + Memorial Hospital in New London. Her brother, Gordon Beckwith, who worked many years for the City of New London, and her three sisters, Doris Stehm, Paula Robinson and Diane Whalen, predeceased her.

She was an independent and determined woman who lived a long and full life. She loved to travel, and she loved her family. She was a New London native who survived the 1938 New England Hurricane and grew up on Ocean Avenue.

She attended Harbor School, graduated from Williams Memorial Institute in 1944, and graduated from Joseph Lawrence School of Nursing in 1946. She joined the U.S. Army in 1950, and served as a nurse and second lieutenant at Valley Forge Army Hospital from 1950 to 1955. She met and married Dr. Bruce L. Shrallow, a U.S. Army dentist, in 1951, at Valley Forge, Pa.

The family built a home in Germantown, N.Y. After a divorce, Joan moved back to her hometown of New London in 1968. She raised three children, Jeffry, Carrie and Pam, as a single parent. She returned to work as a nurse at the Lawrence + Memorial Hospital and then spent over 20 years at Beechwood Manor.

Joan loved the trips the family took to Egypt, Amsterdam, England and Scotland. She enjoyed sailing out of the Thames Yacht Club as a young adult. Later in life, she enjoyed playing bridge, skiing, reading, movies and travel with her sister Doris to Bar Harbor, Maine. Her youngest sister Diane lived in Waterford, and they both enjoyed going out to lunch and spending time together. She was an incredibly strong woman who overcame many challenges in her life.

Joan was loved and is missed terribly by her immediate and remaining family: Jeffry Shrallow, Carrie, Jim and Keira Dussault and Pam and Terry Long. Survivors include Lynn Beckwith, Carol Holman, Dorothy Trumpp, Patty Crohare, John Whalen Jr., Deborah Tischio and Jean Bradley.

Visiting hours will be 5 to 7 p.m. Saturday, April 24, at Thomas L. Neilan & Sons Funeral Home, 12 Ocean Ave., New London.