Joy Sutton Collins, of Darien, Connecticut; Tierra Verde, Florida; and Bayville, Maine, died Feb. 5, 2019, in Stamford, Connecticut, after a brief struggle with pancreatic cancer. She was 77.

Collins was born to the late Bettina Pierce Sutton and David Sutton Jr. on May 9, 1941, in Lancaster, Massachusetts. The eldest of five, she grew up in Lancaster and graduated from the Northfield School in the class of 1959. She attended Tufts University, where she graduated in 1963 with a bachelor’s degree in government. In her freshman year at Tufts, she met classmate and future husband Peter Collins. They were married in 1964 and enjoyed 53 years together until his death in 2018.

She had a long career as a university librarian. After she earned a master’s degree in library science from Drexel University in 1981, she worked as a librarian at LaSalle University and then at Drexel, where she ultimately served as interim library director. She finished her career as director of libraries at Iona College.

Collins was a dedicated grandmother and loved spending time with her five grandchildren. An enthusiastic volunteer, she was involved with the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens and the Darien Community Association Thrift Shop. She also enjoyed reading and her many book groups; traveling around the world; listening to opera and attending concerts from Maine to Florida; and, with the guidance of her classes at Eckerd College, perfecting her pastels.

She is survived by her son and daughter-in-law, William Roi Collins and Robin Johnson Collins, and their children, Hayden, Owen, and Pierce Collins, of Greenwich, Connecticut; and her daughter and son-in-law, Jane Collins Howell and Jon Paul Howell, and their children, Henry and Audrey Howell, of Atlanta, Georgia.

For anyone who wishes, gifts in her memory can be made in her name to your local library. There will be a memorial gathering in Darien in the spring, and one in Boothbay Harbor, Maine, in the summer.