Joan "Joanne" Lorenzen

Joan Johnson Lorenzen, 75, a longtime Burlington area resident, passed away peacefully at her home on December 24, 2005, surrounded by family after a long battle with cancer.
She was born on September 26, 1930 in Mount Vernon, the daughter of Edgar and Martha Tenneson Johnson.
Joan was raised in rural Sedro Woolley, and attended McRae Grade School and Sedro Woolley High School, graduating in 1948. She was married to Laurence Lorenzen from 1951 to 1977. She lived most of her adult life in Burlington.
Joan received her teaching degree from Western Washington State College in 1969 and taught fourth and fifth grade for 28 years in the Stanwood School District, retiring in 1997.
Joan was a long-time active member of the Burlington Lutheran Church, the Washington State Retired Teachers Association, the Washington State School Retirees Association and Soroptimist International. She was also involved in many local charities and organizations, including Relay for Life Cancer Walk, the American Heart Association, and the Sons of Norway. She volunteered at the Burlington Public Library, the Soroptimist’s Thrift Store in Sedro-Woolley; crocheted and donated dozens of blankets for the Domestic Abuse Shelter, and served on numerous committees at her church and these organizations. She greatly enjoyed needle work, church activities, Swedish pancakes with family members, and lots of time with children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her parents and by daughter, Laura.
Joan is survived by her 2 daughters and sons-in-law, Kathy & Keith Thomson of Sedro-Woolley and Diana & Rod Whitney of Issaquah, WA, and by her son and daughter-in-law, Jim & Esther Lorenzen of Moscow, Idaho. 1 sister, Inez Robinson and 2 brothers, Dick Johnson Audrey and Dave Johnson Kacy. 7 grandchildren, Tiffany Hansen and her husband Ryan, Tracey Thomson, Britt-Marie Lorenzen and her fianc