WALTHAM, Mass. — Joan Babigian (Tashjian) passed away peacefully surrounded by her three sons on August 4 at the age of 87. Joan was born in the Bronx and was the daughter of the late Thomas and Siranoush (Boyajian) Tashjian. Joan moved from New York to Boston as a baby and was raised and grew up on Arlington Street in Watertown. She was a 1954 graduate of Watertown High School, where she excelled in field hockey. After high school, Joan began working at Star Market on Mt. Auburn Street in Cambridge where she handled the daily accounting.
In 1957 she met and married Garabed “Gary” Babigian. The couple was blessed with their first child Gary Babigian, Jr. on Christmas day in 1958. The young couple tragically lost “baby Gary” of spinal meningitis just 5 months later in May of 1959. Resiliently, Joan and Gary were blessed with twin boys, Thomas and Peter, later that year in December of 1959. Joan would forever remember this moment as a grace from God, wherein she always told people, “God took one away and gave us back two!”
The family was completed when their third son, Vasken, was born in 1968. Together the family lived and grew up in Waltham where Joan stayed home to take care of her family. As the kids grew older, Joan returned to work at H&R Block and became a manager and tax accountant, where she worked for over 30 years.
Joan and her husband Gary were devoted members of St. James Armenian Church in Watertown. They were charter members of the Mr. & Mrs. Group and Joan was past Superintendent of the Sahag Mesrob Armenian language school.
Joan also served in the past as president of the National Organization of Mothers of Twins Club (NOMOTC), a social organization which connected mothers of twins from all over the country. She would travel to various events, including the annual Conventions, and she made many lifelong friendships.
She loved to cook, with a particular focus on Armenian food, and she loved Armenian music – especially dancing to Armenian music. The family liked to travel and enjoyed many trips to Miami Beach in the early years, Las Vegas and Aruba in the later years. She also enjoyed playing blackjack whenever at a casino and cherished her vacations in Aruba with the “Aruba Group.”
