Constance JoAnne Read

Connie Read of Agate Beach, OR passed away on Wednesday, August 5th, 2015, at the age of 80. She had had a number of illnesses and injuries over the last 13 years, most recently Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) & lung cancer. She spent most of her life as a teacher, principal, and choir & musical director. Wherever she went, she spread the joy of music and of life. Constance JoAnne Drury was born on March 6th, 1935, in Coburg to Franklin James and Lillian (Stolsig) Drury. The family moved to Eugene in 1940, and Connie graduated from Eugene High School in 1953 and received a Bachelor of Music from the University of Oregon in 1962. She later went back to the UO and earned her Masters of Music in 1968...she was a lifelong Duck! Through her life, she taught at every level from kindergarten through college, from Veneta, OR, to Rainier, OR, to Plymouth, NH, back to Eugene (North), then up into Alberta (including Gift Lake, Keg River, and Foremost) and British Columbia (Golden). Connie moved back to Oregon in 1996, and she finished her teaching career at Taft Elementary. She always dreamed that she would retire on the Oregon Coast, and she was able to fulfill that dream, settling in Agate Beach in 2002. In her "retirement" she was the choir director at Atonement Lutheran Church in Newport up until a year ago. And she became involved with local theater in Newport; she was the musical director for "Annie" and "Grease", and she directed "The Music Man" in 2005. The latter turned out to be the 98th (and final) musical production with which she was involved in her life. In 2003, her heart stopped early one morning while she was at a church meeting. Because of that incident, Connie had a pacemaker for the rest of her life. In following years, she suffered a broken hip, broken neck, COPD, breast cancer, and finally the diagnosis of inoperable lung cancer in July. The doctors gave her 1-6 months, and in her usual independent spirit, she didn't have the patience to wait that long. Per her wishes, Connie was cremated, and she will be united once more with her beloved Golden Retrievers, Jake and Luke, "at a place where we can see the ocean." She is survived by her son and daughter-in-law Jon & Francine Read, her grandson Brandon, her sister and brother-in-law Judy & Marvin Trotter, her brother Bob Drury...and many people whose lives she touched through the years. Her memorial/celebration of life service will be held at 2 p.m. at Atonement Lutheran Church in Newport, OR on Saturday, September 12th. Remembrances should go the American Lung Association and/or the ASPCA. Bateman Funeral Home is handling the arrangements.

Tributes

Constance JoAnne Read

March 6, 1935 - August 5, 2015