Reverend Judith Carroll Joy

October 19, 1944 – September 3, 2025
Judith Carroll Joy of Chatham, Massachusetts, died peacefully at home on September 3, 2025. Born in Newport, Rhode Island in 1944 to Lt. Charles B. Carroll and Frances Carr Carroll, she was raised in Needham, Massachusetts, where she was a classmate and then sweetheart of her future husband, Ken Edward Joy. She graduated from Needham High School in 1962 and Mount Holyoke College in 1966. In the 1950’s, Judy’s parents bought a cottage in Hardings Beach Hills where she and her siblings spent summers into their college years. She introduced Ken to the Cape during the early years of their relationship, a love that led them to build their own home in Chatham in 1995.  
After graduating from Amherst College in 1966, Ken joined the U.S. Navy. They married later that year and were stationed together in Morocco for the duration of Ken’s active-duty service. During that time, they traveled across Europe, a love that continued throughout their marriage. They returned to Boston in the early 70’s where Ken graduated from Harvard Business School and then moved to Northern California in 1973 to raise their children and pursue their careers. Jenn was born in 1974, Hilary in 1976 and Matthew in 1982. An avid supporter of her childrens’ passions, she spent hours at swim meets, water polo games, tennis matches, soccer games and guitar lessons. She loved to play tennis on both coasts and created friendships with women she might not have otherwise known. Always an insatiable reader she also began writing to connect with friends on both coasts, express her thoughts and tell her story.  
In 1989, Judy began theological seminary training, receiving her Masters of Divinity degree in 1995. Ordained as a pastor in the Presbyterian Church (USA) in 1997, she then served at churches in the San Jose Presbytery for seventeen years, preaching, teaching and leading women’s groups. She retired in 2014 but continued serving churches for the next decade. As a Parish Associate at First Congregational Church in Chatham, she led the Caregiver Group and Ministry, preached from the pulpit and celebrated the Sacrament of Holy Communion from time to time. Judy’s “Library Gleanings,” prayerful editorials on topics related to books and periodicals in the church library, became a fundamental part of the weekly church newsletter. Over those years, Judy and Ken also led many Oyster Pond summer beach services. During the pandemic in 2021, they moved permanently to Chatham. Judy’s relationship to spiritual discovery blossomed when she made a pilgrimage to Iona, traveling with a group from the Center for the Spiritual Journey.
The grandparenting years were a delight for Judy. She and Ken traveled to New York City, California and Virginia to spend time with their children and grandchildren. Everyone loved to gather in Chatham for vacations, boating, tubing, waterskiing, wake boarding, going to the beach, fishing and playing whiffle ball where Gramma was the star pitcher.
Judy was a woman of faith who loved people, wanted to be close and care for those she knew. She often said she could never have lived the bi-coastal life for so many years except for email and text that allowed her to stay in contact wherever she was. Being with people gave her courage, hope and great joy in the last years.  
Judy is survived by her sister Jane Blankenship and her brother David Carroll. She is also survived by her beloved husband of 58 years, Ken, their three children and seven grandchildren: Jenn and her son Sian; Hilary and her husband Josh and their children Sadie, Chase and Tabitha; and Matthew and his wife Jessica and their children Milo, Ari and Cecilia.
A memorial service to celebrate Judy’s life will be held at the First Congregational Church of Chatham on Saturday, September 20th at 11:00AM.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be sent to the First Congregational Church Memorial Garden or to the Center for the Spiritual Journey to support the Chatham Labyrinth.
For condolences, please visit NickersonFunerals.com