Linda Borg Joels

Linda Borg Joels, of Middletown, died Tuesday, June 2, 2020 after a prolonged illness. Joels was born April 15, 1941 to Richard Borg and Marguerite Keser Borg. She received her bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Connecticut and her master’s in nursing from Yale University. Joels worked for more than three decades at Midstate Medical Center in Meriden as the director of mental health and clinical services before retiring in 2002. Prior to Midstate, Joels worked as a supervising nurse at Connecticut Valley Hospital. Throughout her career, she taught nursing at Yale University, Ona Wilcox School of Nursing in Middletown, Hartford Hospital and the University of Saint Joseph in West Hartford.

A lifelong activist, Joels participated in marches for women’s and LGBTQ+ rights. When not debating politics, she enjoyed reading a James Patterson novel or true crime book on the beach or planning her next trip to Walt Disney World. An ideal day for Joels included a Jackson Browne concert followed by a steak dinner, cooked “as rare as you can make it.” She attended every UConn women’s basketball game she could, and when she could no longer make it to Gampel Pavilion, she would watch intently on her TV, texting her granddaughter’s periodic updates. Of all her roles, she most cherished that of grandmother to her two granddaughters, Alexandra Fitzner and Abigail Brone. She never tired of bragging to anyone who would listen about her granddaughter Abigail’s recent graduation from Columbia University with a master’s degree in journalism, while her penchant for true crime and psychology led Alexandra to a career as a forensic mental health counselor in the state’s department of corrections where her daughter Vanessa also works. Creative and kind, Joels taught her granddaughters how to knit, sew, cook and stand up for what you believe in, even if what you believe in differs from conventions.

Joels is survived by her daughter Vanessa Fitzner-Brone and son-in-law Ronald Brone; her granddaughters Alexandra Fitzner and Abigail Brone; her brother Richard Borg and sister-in-law Elizabeth Borg; her sister Dr. Betsey Borg; her youngest brother William Borg; her life-partner Joan Clauss; and many nieces and nephews.

A graveside service will be held on Wednesday, June 10 at 10:00 am in the Swedish Cemetery184 Williams Street in Portland. In lieu of flowers, please consider memorial donations to the American Diabetes Association, as Joels lived with type 2 diabetes for 35 years. To donate to the American Diabetes Association in Linda Joels’ honor please visit http://main.diabetes.org/goto/lindajoels. To share memories or send condolences to the family, please visit www.doolittlefuneralservice.com.

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