Dowd, Joan F. died Sept. 25, 2015, age 83, at Rosewood Nursing Center, Peabody, MA, where she was an Alzheimer's resident for several years. Joan was the third and youngest daughter of Mary Elizabeth and Frederick J. Flaherty who lived in Portland, ME and Cushing Island, ME.

Joan graduated from St. Joseph's Academy, Poertland, ME and Marymount College, Tarrytown, NY. At Marymount, Joan won the school's Art Award and was captain of the field hockey team on which she had played four years as the starting goaltender. Later she earned her education master's degree from Southern Connecticut State Univesity, Hamden, CT.

Joan started regular grammar school teacing in Beverly, MA, and then continued in Portland, ME. She married William H. Dowd of Watertown, CT, in 1958 and lived there for 54 years. Joan had five children and returned to teaching. She started as a traveling grammar schools art teacher at both Baldwin and Fletcher, and then rose through Heminway, Judson and Swift to Watertown High School. At WHS, Joan had many talented students and she was always eager to publicly exhibit their work, not only for their benefit, but also to expose the WHS Art Department for the taxpayers' appreciation. Joan also had private art groups, WHS night school, Taft summer school and the Honor Society at WHS. One summer, she stepped in as a last-minute substitute APPLE art teacher in Lithuania to encourage their teachers after years of restriction by the Germans and then the Russians.

Joan is survived by: her sister, Patricia F. McGaughan, Watertown, CT; her husband, William H. Dowd, Beverly, MA; William & Susan Dowd, Wenham, MA; and Mary (Ellie) & Stuart Muter, Lexington, MA; Patricia Dowd, New Canaan, CT: and Sarah Dowd, Cary, NC. Joan was predeceased by her sister, Mary Elizabeth Jackson, Narragansett, RI, and her son, Dennis H. Dowd, Lancaster, PA. There are 8 grandchildren: Jennifer, Katherine, Victoria and William Dowd; Kayla and Thomas Dowd; and Henry and William Muter.

A Mass of Christian burial will be held Thursday October 1 at St. Brigid Church, 2001 Mass. Ave. Lexington at 11am. Relatives and friends are kindly invited to attend. Visitation Thursday, prior to Mass, at the Douglass Funeral Home, 51 Worthen Rd. Lexington from 9:30am to 10:45am. Private interment Calvary Cemetery, South Portland, ME.