William Walter Joyce

William Walter Joyce, long-time resident of East Lansing, Michigan, and recent transplant to North Richland Hills, Texas, passed away peacefully on June 25, 2018. Members of his family were at his side throughout his final days.

Bill was born on July 11, 1934, in Appleton, Wisconsin, to Don and Betty Joyce. He met his future wife of 61 years, Mary Bosser, while still in high school; they both attended Lawrence College, and married in 1956. Jobs and graduate school took them first to Lake Forest, Illinois, where Mary taught school and Bill attended Northwestern University, and then to East Lansing, where Bill taught in the College of Education and later directed the Canadian Studies program at Michigan State University. He retired in 2009.

Bill had several passions in life, one of which was his work as an educator. During the more than 45 years he taught at MSU, “work” was never work or a chore—he loved teaching and advising students, and enjoyed weaving stories about his children and grandchildren into his lectures. Even after his retirement, he continued researching and writing, completing a book on the Lincoln assassination, and a second book on how to care for Alzheimer’s patients. This last book was completed a few weeks prior to his death.

Another of Bill’s passions was his wife, Mary. Her interests and passions became his, including Mary’s love of travel, music and theater. They took countless trips to the Stratford Festival in Canada, and more than a dozen trips to Europe to visit historic sites. For the last several months of his life, most days ended by watching an episode of “Downton Abbey.”

Finally, Bill was passionate about his faith. A lifelong church-goer, first as a Catholic and then as a Lutheran, Bill read scripture, attended bible study, and engaged with his pastors on theological topics. During his time in Texas, he found a new church home at Peace Lutheran in Hurst, but he sorely missed his home church of Martin Luther Chapel in East Lansing.

During the last year of his life, Bill was cared for by his daughter Britten and granddaughter Avery, then by his oldest son and daughter-in-law, Sean and Kim Joyce, who took Bill into their home in Texas. These dear people gave Bill the hope and love he needed after his wife passed away in 2017, and allowed him to pass away gracefully in his Texas home.

Bill is survived by his four children (Sean, Kevin, Britten and Brooke), eight grandchildren, brother (Jim) and sister (Pat).

A memorial service will be held at First Baptist Church in Bedford, Texas, on Saturday, July 14 at 11 am. A second service will be held at Martin Luther Chapel in East Lansing, Michigan, on Saturday, August 4, with family visitation at 10 am and service at 11 am, followed by a light lunch. In lieu of flowers, contributions to Martin Luther Chapel would be welcome.