Listen to your brothers and sisters,

be compassionate with them in their difficulties,

bear with them in their weaknesses,

encourage and support them.

Affirm your brothers and sisters in their gifts,

for by doing so you enable them to realize the

gifts that God has given them for service.

Fundamental Principles of the Xaverian Brothers

Remembering Lois Treacy

Reflecting on an effortless educator who exuded grace, compassion, humility, the spirit of hospitality, and a deep commitment to family and friends

Lois Anne (Giovanella) Treacy P ‘86 ’88, who taught typing, accounting, and computer keyboarding courses at St. John’s Prep for 24 years, passed away at her longtime Peabody home on September 1 after a 15-month battle with Stage 4 cancer. She was 80.

Born in Newton on a bitterly cold December 29, 1944, Mrs. Treacy was raised in Wellesley and earned her B.S. in Business Education at what is now Salem State University. As a student there, she met her future husband of 58 years, Thomas. The couple was married in 1967 and, in 1972, they settled in that same Peabody single-family, topped by a distinctive gable-and-turret roofline. 

Mrs. Treacy was universally regarded as a stately, sensible, and calming presence inside and outside the classroom, a demeanor that veiled a rich family history, a broad variety of interests, and some bonafide talents. 

She was a woman known to quote the Dalai Lama, yet also played Yahtzee with her husband on a daily basis. She adored both Florida and the Disney experience, but never once went on a ride. A lifelong animal-lover and excellent cook and baker, Treacy sought out sea glass and sand dollars at her many beloved beaches, enjoyed eclectic musical tastes (Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, the Beatles, Jimmy Buffett, and Kenny Rogers), and rarely passed on a chance to eat ice cream.

She possessed an extraordinary fashion sense and styled herself in a manner that would today be considered a personal brand. Above all else, however, her love of family was paramount. And that was obvious to everyone.

“Lois was all about family,” says longtime St. John’s colleague Wendy Larivee P’99, a retired Spanish teacher. “She used to tell us all the time about the weekly family dinners she organized. Those gatherings were so important to her.”

Mrs. Treacy’s departure from the Prep in 2008, in fact, came when she chose to care for her ailing, octogenarian mother at home. Bernice (Savilonis) Giovanella, who lived another 11 years, fell four months shy of her 102nd birthday. 

Mrs. Treacy’s maternal side was Lithuanian, but her father’s Italian roots had a considerable impact on how she came to understand the meaning of home, family, and community. Both her parents were part of their respective families’ first generation born in the U.S., with her father, Henry (Enrico at birth), being one of 10 siblings. 

Treacy’s upbringing in Wellesley coincided with the town’s transformation from an affluent rural area to a developed suburb. In the 1950s and ’60s, there were still active farms and large tracts of open space within the town’s borders. As a consequence, Henry would bring home animals all the time to be family pets. Cats, dogs, rabbits, and chickens roamed the property. The family even had a pet monkey for a while—probably quite the “to-do” in a town that still had a social club dating from the Gilded Age. 

“She was always an animal lover, and that’s been passed down to me and my siblings, too,” says Treacy’s eldest son, Tom, a 1986 St. John’s Prep graduate. “We all love dogs. We all love cats. She would do anything to not see an animal hurt.” 

ALWAYS IN YOUR CORNER

A 1962 Wellesley High graduate, Mrs. Treacy began her teaching career shortly after college, working at Wilmington High, Gloucester High, and Andover High before coming to the Prep. Her husband, Thomas, taught business classes at Woburn High for almost 40 years. 

“Lois was always positive, fun, and genteel at the same time,” says former Prep colleague Jody Meyer, a retired math teacher and founding member of the School’s SwingTown! a capella group. “She maintained that respect and also that care in all of her dealings with her students and colleagues.”

“She was a Prep mom, so she just ‘got it,’ adds German teacher Chris Lynch, who came to St. John’s in 1994. “She was a very good teacher who never had a problem with discipline in the classroom.”

Retired Spanish teacher Monica Keeley remembers Mrs. Treacy as “a peaceful, caring, loyal, and level-headed friend who gave her students practical advice,” while Religious Studies teacher Joe Lovett P’14, now in his 35th year at the School, says she showed “sincere interest in me and my young family … this went beyond mere pleasantries. She would actively seek out anyone who was struggling to inquire, listen, and encourage them.”

All this while maintaining a considerable sense of panache and sartorial elegance. 

“She was somebody who was always dressed to the nines, and we all thought it was amazing that she could look so beautiful every day,” recalls Larivee. “She really was our resident fashionista. She was a scarf lady. She was so good with scarfs that on days I brought one in, I’d hand it to Lois. She would drape it on me beautifully, and for the first two classes, it was great, but by lunch block, I’d usually look like Pig-Pen. Of course, she’d eventually see me and say, ‘Oh, goodness, I’ve got to fix that.’”

Mrs. Treacy stayed busy outside of school as well, working part-time at Talbot’s and later at a CVS pharmacy. That former role helped fuel her connection with her granddaughter. 

“She was just so warm, so classy, and chic—absolute grace” explains Miranda Blanchette, the eldest of nine grandchildren. “We shared a love of shopping together. I was around for several years before any cousins came along, so I am fortunate to have spent the most time with her. There were a lot of days of her picking me up from school and us spending the afternoons together. We’d go for ice cream. We’d scope out different locations of TJ Maxx or HomeGoods for deals and we’d mall-shop. I’d go and visit her at Talbots, too.”

Her own children report a similar, loving immersion.

“Growing up, my friends were always so happy to hang out at my house because my mom created such a warm, welcoming environment that people felt comfortable there—she had a gift for it,” says daughter, Jennifer Baker, who attributes being an educator herself to her parents. “She was a high school teacher, and so was our dad, so they could relate at that level. My friends still talk about how much they enjoyed being at my parents’ house. I’m not sure my mom knew how much people loved and appreciated her kindness.”

Good food was a big part of how Mrs. Treacy engaged with the world. She took her Christmas lasagna, her signature mac and cheese, and her chocolate cake with vanilla icing just as seriously as she did a great deal on a pair of slingback pumps. Weeknights were no exception. 

“We weren’t rich when we were growing up, but we always had a hot, home-cooked meal every day, followed by a homemade dessert, and we had a lot of love for each other,” says son, Mike ’88. Naturally, she relished bigger family gatherings, where she could pair her two greatest passions: Her cooking and her kin.

At her core, Mrs. Treacy viewed her most important roles in life as a devoted wife to her husband of 58 years, a daughter, mother, grandmother and, just four months ago, a great-grandmother. 

As Mike Treacy noted in his eulogy, “Daughter, sister, aunt, wife, mother, Nana, Mrs. Treacy, Lois—no matter what you knew her as, she was the same beautiful person. She was who she was and she liked what she liked: sunny days at the beach, baking, Disney World, drinking cans of Pepsi with a straw, playing board games, chicken piccata from The Berry Tavern, and ice cream. She also loved what she loved, and that was her friends, her dog Buddy, and most of all, her family.” 

In addition to her husband, she leaves her three children, Thomas Treacy and his wife, Sarah, of Woburn, Michael Treacy and his wife, Jean, of Danvers, and, Jennifer Baker and her husband, Brian, of Topsfield; sister, Mary Pollock, of Exeter, NH; sister-in-law, Jo-Ann Giovanella, of Medway, nine grandchildren and a great-grandson. She was predeceased by her two brothers, Francis and Edward.