88, beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, passed away Saturday, November 16, 2019. Memorial Service 11 a.m., Wednesday, November 20, at Grace Presbyterian Church, 5002 E. Douglas, Wichita, KS. Born February 22, 1931, in Wichita, KS, Joyce was the second of two daughters born to Virgil Levi and Glynnece Beatrice (Dempsey) Wilbur. Joyce’s family lived on a farm at Ridge and Central. When she was 14, Joyce’s family moved to Augusta, where she attended High School. Joyce began her college education at Kansas State University in 1948 and alternated working summers at Boeing and attending classes during the school year. She married her first husband, Otis Temple Graham, in 1951 and they relocated to California in 1952. Her first child was born in June 1953 but died in childbirth. Joyce returned to Wichita for the birth of her second child in Oct 1954, and the third child followed in Feb 1956. After her divorce she and her two young children relocated back to Augusta where they lived with her parents on the farm. She began her teaching career in 1956 at Washington Elementary in Wichita. The following year she returned to college completing a BS in Education from Friends University in May 1958. Joyce married her current husband, William (Bill) Lewis on Nov 1, 1959 at the First Presbyterian Church in Wichita. They quickly had three more sons in stair-step order from 1960 to 1963 and William adopted Joyce’s oldest two children in 1961. Joyce was devoted to her family and to the concept of education. The family moved to Hays, Kansas in 1966 and Joyce resumed teaching. Her first master’s degree was earned in 1976 at Fort Hays State. The family returned to Wichita in 1977, moving into the Special Education department. She earned her second Master's in Special Education Behavioral Disorders in 1979 from Wichita State University. Joyce taught Special Education first at Payne Elementary, then at Peterson Elementary – the same school she attended as a child – and then Gardiner Elementary. Joyce retired from full time teaching in 1991, but very shortly thereafter found she missed being involved with children and signed on as a substitute teacher. She was active as a substitute for another fifteen years along with active participation in the tutoring program at her church. Joyce was preceded by her parents; sister, Beverly (Wilbur) Snyder; and her oldest son, Temple Cameron Lewis. She leaves a daughter, Terese (Charlie); three sons, David (Amy), Barry, and Brian (Pat); six grandchildren, Lucas M. L. Deaton, Phillip C. L. Gwinner, Emily R. L. Gwinner, Justin M. Lewis (Erin), Lindsay R. Brown (Matthew), and Clinton G. Lewis; two great-granddaughters, Kayleigh Renee Deaton, and Elaine Marie Brown. She will be greatly missed by all who knew her and remembered always. Memorial established with the Tutoring Program of Grace Presbyterian Church, 5002 E. Douglas, Wichita, KS. 67208.
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