Joann Merrell Coats of Harwich died peacefully on Feb. 13, 2021 at the Wingate at Harwich Nursing Home. She was 88.
Joann was born on April 28, 1932 in Provincetown, where she was raised and spent most of her life. She married the late Jerrold V. Coats on April 15, 1952 in St. Peter the Apostle Church, surrounded by her loving family. Joann was an excellent homemaker and a passionate cook and baker. Her hospitality was legendary among family and friends.
She cooked in the summers at the Provincetown Dairy Queen for 35 years for owner David Silva, and then, after he sold the Dairy Queen, she baked at his Red Inn for 10 more years. Her chocolate chip cookies, a staple on the pillows of guests, were famous and were the subject of a feature story in Yankee magazine.
She was a member of the Ladies Auxiliary, Lewis A. Young Post, Veterans of Foreign Wars.
Joann is survived by her three children: daughter Jody Joseph, daughter Rhonda and husband Kenneth Corse, and son Eric Coats and wife Judy. She enjoyed the blessings of many wonderful grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and friends, especially her childhood friend Dotty Adams. She was predeceased by a son, Glen Coats.
Because of Covid restrictions, Joann will be interred next to her husband in a private family service at St. Peter’s Cemetery, Provincetown. A celebration of her life will be held when it is deemed safe to do so.
Memorial donations in Joann’s name may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105.
To share a memory or leave a message of condolence for the family, visit the guestbook at gatelyfuneralservice.com.
