Margaret Clarissa Dean

Margaret Clarissa "Joy" Blackadar-Dean of Albuquerque, NM passed away peacefully after an extended battle with Alzheimer's.

Joy was born on October 9th, 1928, in Plainfield, NJ to Walter Lloyd and Harriet Blackadar. After graduating from North Plainfield High School in 1946, Joy went on to receive a Bachelor's Degree from Denison University in 1950 and a Master's Degree from the University of Colorado in 1957.

During her time at the University of Colorado she met and married her husband of 62 years, John Wyman Dean. They had two children, Steven James Dean of Salt Lake City, Utah and Nancy Joy Dean-Johnson, of Los Alamos, NM.

Joy moved to Los Alamos with her husband in 1972 where they raised their two children. Joy worked for the Los Alamos Public School System for 14 years until her retirement in 1993. Her employment in the schools, where she worked with special educational needs children, for many years was great source of pleasure and satisfaction to Joy. She made many life-long friends and bonds during the duration of her service in the public schools.

Joy loved her immediate and extended family greatly and had a strong faith in God. She lived life with zest and exuberance. Joy had quick wit and a lively sense of humor, but the true hallmark of her character was the compassionate, loving, and accepting way in which she lived her daily life-always guided by her Christian values. Joy enjoyed horseback riding from an early age and spent many hours riding through the canyons and trails in Los Alamos. Her other hobbies included reading, knitting, and gardening.

Joy is preceded in death by her parents, Walter Lloyd and Harriet Blackadar; and her four brothers, Alfred, Walter, Gordon, and John Blackadar. Joy is survived by her husband John and their two children, Steve Dean and wife Erika, and daughter Nancy Dean Johnson; as well as her five grandchildren, Wyatt and Savannah Dean and Emily, Cole, and Davis Johnson.

Joy moved to Albuquerque permanently in 1991 with her husband, where she volunteered with illiterate adults as a tutor and sang in the choir at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church where she was a member.

Services will be held at St Andrew Presbyterian Church, in Albuquerque, NM, 5301 Ponderosa Ave, NE, on Friday, October 1, 2021, at 10:00am. In lieu of flowers please make donations to the Alzheimer's Association in Joy's honor at Alz.org.