Joan Ann “Joanie” Boragine — a recent resident of Fallon, Nevada, former resident of Gilbert, Arizona, since 2007; Danville, California, since 1981; Buffalo Grove, Illinois, since 1969 and former Darien hometown resident — passed away peacefully on Sunday, Nov. 12, 2023, at Fernley Estates in Fernley, Nevada.
Joan Borgaine, 83, passed away Nov. 12. A celebration of life will be held at a later date.
Joan was born in Stamford on May 31, 1940, daughter of the late Edward J. and Elizabeth “Betty” (Lockwood) McCue. She attended Darien schools and graduated from Darien High School as a member of the Class of 1959.
Following graduation, Joan attended Mt. Ida College in Newton, Massachusetts. She was very social and maintained many friendships from her school days throughout her life.
While at Mt. Ida, Joan met Frank Boragine. They were soon married and started their family in Walpole, Massachusetts. Together they raised three children and in 1969 Frank was promoted to a management position in Chicago, moving the family from their East Coast hometowns to the Midwest of Buffalo Grove, Illinois. In the mid- to late 1970s, Joan got her real estate license and joined REMAX, where she made lifelong friends.
Her outgoing personality, contagious smile and laugh, and dedication to her clients earned her a successful, while short-lived, career. When Frank retired from Dun & Bradstreet in 1981, they relocated to Danville, California.
It was there that Joan joined Madsen Personnel, obtained her master’s degree, and soon thereafter started her own very successful business, J. Boragine and Associates in San Francisco.
Joan was a long-time member and past president of the California Staffing Professionals Association (CSP) and was proud of the contributions the organization had on the professional staffing industry. In 2007, Joan and Frank retired to Gilbert, Arizona, reuniting with lifelong friends from Illinois.
Joan had a wonderful childhood growing up in Darien. She and her family traveled on the Queen Elizabeth from New York to England, Ireland and Scotland on many occasions, visiting family and embracing her Irish and Scottish heritage.
Joan was an adventurist, a daredevil, competitive and never one to back down from a challenge. Whether it was river rafting down the American River in Sacramento, snow shoeing at Kirkwood Ski Resort, boating and water skiing along the Long Island Sound or Hot Air Ballooning in Phoenix, she loved life.
She loved the ocean and the beach, from Cape Cod on the East Coast where she spent many summers as a child and young adult, Carmel and Monterey on the West Coast and Delray Beach in Florida.
She and Frank visited their family and hometowns annually. Their last New England trip was in the fall of 2013 to Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine. Shortly thereafter, in April 2014, Joan suffered a debilitating and life altering stroke.
Joan was active in their children’s and grandchildren’s lives. She was a Girl Scout leader for her daughter and Cub Scout leader for both of her sons, and she always attended the various music and sporting activities they participated in. She enjoyed tennis, golf and never turned down an opportunity to host a party. Her favorite was the Kentucky Derby.
Joan is survived by her daughter, Tamara (Boragine) Rapp and her husband, Burt of Fallon, Nevada; her son, Kirk Boragine, his first wife, Megan (Owings/Boragine) Basta and her husband, Samy of Novato, California; Kirk’s current wife of San Tan Valley, Arizona, their son, Stephen Boragine, and his wife, Lisa of Corvallis, Oregon; and her beloved dog, Prancer.
Joan “Gran” will also be missed dearly by six grandchildren and many nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her loving husband of 63 years, Francis Vincent Boragine, in 2023; and brother Edward J. McCue in 2015.
A celebration of life will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association, 2065 W. El Camino Real, Suite C, Mountain View, CA 94040 or the American Heart & Stroke Association, PO Box 840692, Dallas, TX 75284-0692.
— an obituary from the Arizona Republic website, where online condolences may be left