Joyce Louise Olson was born in August 16, 1928 near Ellsworth, Iowa to Mariah Elizabeth Chandler and Thomas Nelius Olson. She was the youngest of four siblings and grew up on farms and in town in the Hamilton County area. As a child and teen, she was a devoted student, and was proud to have graduated as salutatorian from Ellsworth High School in 1945 at 16 years old. After high school, she went to Ames Institute of Business in Des Moines for executive secretarial job training, graduating in 1947.
On July 4, 1944, she began dating Dick Appelgate, who she had met in Sunday school when they were teens. She and Dick wrote letters back and forth during his time in the army, and her time living in Des Moines. They were engaged September 12, 1947 after he was discharged, celebrating their engagement with a party on Valentine's Day, and marrying one month later on March 14, 1948. Joyce took on the role of farm wife, moving with her husband into the top floor of her in-laws’ farmhouse. In May of 1949, they welcomed their first daughter, Mary Elizabeth, followed by Linda Joyce in 1953, and Deborah Ann in 1956. On January 1, 1958, she and Dick left their Iowa farm and moved the family to Denver in pursuit of a career change in Colorado.
In Denver, they welcomed their son Robert Richard (Bob) in 1959. Later that year the family moved to the Happy Homes neighborhood of Littleton, where they lived for many years, with great neighbors as friends. In 1963, Joyce and her family became members of Littleton United Methodist Church. She was active in the church for decades through Sunday School.
Over the years, Joyce cared for her family as a homemaker, sewing and baking delicious cookie and decorating beautiful cakes. She loved the mountains and camping, and according to family “could catch a brook trout in a mud puddle”. In her 50s, Joyce took up tole painting, and painted hundreds of decorative pieces. She also was a mean Atari player, and wrote her daily high scores on the calendar for some time in the 1980s. She was active in a local Contest Club, writing jingles, poems and limericks. She also liked to make gift giving a treasure hunt by giving one clue then having you search the house for one clue after another until you finally found your gift.
Joyce also enjoyed travelling, and visited Hawaii, Alaska, and much of the lower 48.
She was known among her friends and family for her love of card games, amazing fishing skills, and above all, her humor. Joyce enjoyed giving and receiving silly gifts that made her and those around her laugh. In recent years at Hallmark Nursing Center, the staff always commented on her sense of humor and cheerful disposition. In March of 2018, she and Dick joyfully celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary.
She is preceded in death by her husband Dick Appelgate, her parents, Mariah Elizabeth and Thomas Nelius, her sister Amelia Caruth, brothers Ken Olson and Pete Olson, sons-in-law Mike Akins and Jim Tibbs, and grandson Michael Tibbs. She is survived by her children Mary Tibbs, Linda Akins, Debbie (Ron) Pierce, Bob (Cheryl) Appelgate, along with 11 grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, January 26 at 2:00 at Littleton United Methodist Church 5894 S. Datura St, Littleton, CO 80120. Joyce’s cremains will be interred in a family ceremony at Littleton United Methodist Church columbarium at a future date. Contributions may be made to the Richard and Joyce Appelgate Memorial fund at Littleton United Methodist Church
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