Joan Frances (Soper) Freeman

The amazing life of Joan Freeman came to an end Saturday, June 24, 2023 after a three-year battle with cancer. She passed away peacefully, surrounded as she lived, by family and the love of her life, her husband of over 54 years, Don.
Joan grew up in Commerce City, CO in a close-knit family. After graduating high school, Joan worked as a script typist at Lowry Air Force Base in Denver. She met Don there and the couple was married eight months later, the start of a fairytale romance everyone wanted to emulate. The couple held hands everywhere they went together. Their first move was a military assignment to Spain. After the military, the couple returned to Denver. The family, now with their sons Chris and Nick, would soon move to Nebraska, then to Ohio. While there Joan became the first person in her family to earn a college diploma in 1987, her start in building a 25-plus year career as a human resources executive. Along the way, she made numerous friends at work and in the community. When Joan and Don retired they returned to Colorado. Joan kept her former colleagues updated on their adventures with a weekly blog, mirroring the weekly letters she wrote to her mother after moving from Denver. She wrote to her mother every week until she passed, 30 years to the week before Joan joined her.
Joan's final friendships came after the couple moved to Albuquerque in 2020. She and Don forged fast and close relationships during the early stages of the pandemic with numerous couples in the neighborhood. She treasured their weekly Happy Hour gatherings and the time she and Don spent with the couples Joan nicknamed the Fab Four.
Joan is survived by her husband Don; their sons Chris and Nick; grandchildren Trevor and Alexia; a sister, Nita (Pat); and a brother, Dan (Pam). She was preceded in death by her father Ben; her beloved mother, Frances; and a sister, Pat (Jim).
A Memorial Service will be held from 3:00-5:00 p.m. Friday, July 21,2023, at FRENCH-Westside. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Colorectal Cancer Alliance.