Joanne M. (Rotter) Lake

61, of Cranston, passed away on November 17, 2021 at home.  Born in Providence, Joanne was a daughter of the late William C. Rotter of Cranston, RI and Elizabeth M. (D'Amore) and Sheldon Fine of Jamestown, RI, and Barbara Rotter of Cranston, RI.  She was a bus driver for the City of Cranston for over 30 years in addition to working at the J. Arthur Trudeau Memorial Center taking care of adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities for over 10 years.  

Joanne’s work gave her purpose and joy.  The children she got to bring to school each day, were delivered with love and care.  Her time at the Trudeau center allowed her to creatively take care of her patients, like creating a movie theatre in her living room providing a private movie screening including popcorn.   She was a hard worker who always put others first.  She loved to spend quality time with her friends attending art festivals, regular dinners at her favorite places and just talking on the phone. She was also a lover of animals, and was very fond of her may adopted cats throughout the years, especially Zander.  When she found something funny you could hear her laugh across a room.  Nothing put a bigger smile on her face like spending time with her family especially her grandson, Alexander, “the baby”. 

She is survived by her loving children, Gregory W. Lake of Scottsdale, AZ, and Brandon P. Lake of Foster, RI.  Joanne was the cherished grandmother of Alexander J. Lake.  She was a dear sister of Jean Ruhlemann of Johnston, RI and Carol Rotter of Cranston, RI, and a loving aunt to Akins Balogun of Providence, RI. She leaves behind her longtime companion Eric Bushee of West Warwick, RI.

Her funeral services, although private, will be held on Monday, November 29, 2021 at Nardolillo Funeral Home & Crematory.

In lieu of flowers please make a donation in her honor to PawsWatch, an organization she held dear to her heart. 

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