Joanne Mary Cooney

Joanne M. Cooney of Waretown, NJ, passed away on Wednesday, May 26, 2021 surrounded by her loving family. Joanne was born in the Bronx, NY. She moved to New Jersey and resided in Bogota, Wyckoff, Toms River, and most recently, Waretown. Joanne’s working career, spanning many years, was spent educating countless individuals as a teacher and Curriculum Supervisor for several school districts in New Jersey.  She received her Bachelor’s degree from Catholic University of America where she fell in love with and later married her husband James; together they raised three loving children. After earning three Masters Degrees, Joanne also served as an Adjunct Professor in both undergraduate and graduate programs at Montclair State University and William Paterson University.

 Joanne was predeceased by parents Joseph and Rachel Rusbarsky. Joanne is survived by her devoted husband James, her two sons: Christopher and his wife Erin and Brendan and his wife Jenna, her daughter, Megan, and her husband Martin, and her brother Matthew Rusbarsky. Joanne was the loving grandmother to her seven grandchildren: James, Jackson, Carter, Kyra, Luke, Joe, and Callen.

The Cooney family will receive family and friends on Wednesday, June 2, 2021 from 2:00pm -4:00pm and 7:00pm - 9:00pm at the Vander Plaat Funeral Home, www.vpfh.com  257 Godwin Ave., Wyckoff, NJ 07481. A Funeral Mass will be held Thursday, June 3, 2021, 10:00 am at St. Elizabeth’s RC Church, 700 Wyckoff Ave., Wyckoff, NJ 07481. The Mass will also be Live streamed at https://saintelizabeths.org/live-streaming. As an expression of sympathy, in lieu of flowers, contributions in Joanne’s memory may be made to:  Metastatic Breast Cancer Network   c/o Shirley Mertz, 1481 Thor Drive, Inverness, Illinois, 60067 or at MBCN.org.

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