Jeanne Marie Cooney

Middleton:  Jeanne Marie Cooney (Beaubien) passed away peacefully at home in the last hours of the summer solstice day, June 21st, 2023. She was born on December 12, 1940, the daughter of Catherine “Ruth” and Laurence Beaubien. She grew up in Tulsa, OK, attended the University of Tulsa and graduated from Southwest Missouri State College. After college, she pursued a career in social work, and moved to Kansas City, Missouri, where she met Charles Ernest Cooney. They married on July 18, 1964. She and Ernie moved to Indiana, where they started a family, settling in Madison, WI in 1968. Jeanne raised three children, and hers was the house where neighborhood children would gather. She worked as an infant evaluator for Central Wisconsin Colony, and fostered several children with disabilities. She later worked at Edgewood College, where she was the assistant to the Dean of Students for 17 years. 

Jeanne is remembered for her razor sharp wit, warmth and compassion. Over the years, she volunteered for several causes, campaigning for several Democratic candidates, volunteering for schools, and serving on the board of Catholic Social Services. She had a passion for travel, and welcomed the opportunities she had to visit Europe a number of times, as well as China, India, and Japan. She and Ernie traveled to Mexico, returning annually to her beloved Cozumel, where she delighted in the warm conviviality and natural beauty of the island. Jeanne made deep and abiding friendships which enriched her life. She loved nature, murder mysteries, Jane Austen, knitting, and good times with dear friends and family. When asked for words of wisdom on her 80th birthday, Jeanne responded, “Dance while you still can.”

Jeanne is survived by her husband of 58 years, Ernie Cooney, her children David Cooney (Jing Zhang) of Pleasant Hill, CA, Stephen Cooney of San Francisco, CA, and Catherine Cooney (Robert Cozzolino) of Minneapolis, MN, and her grandchildren Erin, Jonathan, Thomas and Fabrizio. She was preceded in death by her parents and aunt Edith Curry.

There will be a memorial coffee at Cress Funeral Home, 6021 University Ave., Madison, WI  53705 at 8:30 am on Monday, July 3, followed by a Funeral Mass at Blessed Sacrament, 2121 Rowley Ave., Madison, WI 53726 at 11:00am.

Please share your memories at www.cressfuneralservice.com

Cress Center

6021 University Ave. Madison

(608) 238-8406