ANDOVER | Martin 'Joe' Cotton died peacefully at home with his family on Monday, April 18, 2011.
Joe was born in New York City on Sept. 15, 1938 and spent his formative years in an ethnically diverse inner-city neighborhood. He has been a resident of Andover for 33 years. He was honorably discharged from the Air Force in 1959 and began a life-long career in human services. Joe has an M.A. in Clinical Psychology from Antioch University in Columbia, Md., and a B.A., magna cum laude, from the State University system in New Jersey.
He attended a prestigious one-year Fellowship in Mental Health Administration at the Washington School of Psychiatry and a one-year Fellowship in Behavioral Medicine at Cambridge Hospital. Joe was the Chief Executive of The Psychological Center for 32 years and considered this his life's work.
He is remembered for his ability to inspire others to recognize and be their best, his generous and compassionate heart, for standing up for the rights of those unable to do so for themselves, and his sense of humor. His clinical interests included cutting-edge evidence-based treatment, community psychology, cognitive behavioral therapy, Buddhist psychology often described as cognitive therapy with heart, behavioral medicine, positive psychology, mindfulness meditation, and promoting the emotional well-being of the community at large. Joe has taught at Merrimack College and Cambridge College and wrote a weekly column for the Eagle-Tribune on behavioral medicine, stress, and coping and a weekly column for kids on sports collectibles. He also provided hundreds of trainings on a wide range of topics to the public and produced a Relaxation and Mindfulness Meditation CD. He is an Honored Life Member of the American Psychological Association and Emeritus Member of the Society of Behavioral Medicine. He has received numerous awards and commendations over the years and is most proud of his Latin Pride award, Golden Circle award, and other awards from the Latino community, his "Key to the City of Lawrence" for his work in the community, and his Women's Agenda award for advancing women's leadership.
Joe is survived by his wife of 33 years, Janice Mills Cotton; sons, Andrew Cotton-Clay and Zachary Cotton; daughters, Roxanne Finch and Renee Paul from a previous marriage; daughter-in-law, Ruth Murray-Clay; brother, Stephen Cotton; five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
ARRANGEMENTS: A memorial service will be held on May 7 at 1 p.m. at the North Parish Unitarian Church in North Andover. Funeral arrangements are being handled by the John Breen Funeral Home. In lieu of flowers, a fund is being established in Joe Cotton's name to benefit the homeless and people in recovery. When details are confirmed, they will be posted on the John Breen Funeral Home website. www.breenfuneralhome.com.