Joyce Green's Obituary
Joyce C. (La France) Green passed away on January 20, 2023 at 89 years old at Arcadia in University Place, WA.
The daughter of Patricia and Vern La France, Joyce was born August 18, 1933 in Seattle WA. Patricia left Vern. The family moved to San Francisco CA when Joyce was 3 and lived there until she was 12. The family's early days in San Francisco were during WWII. Joyce and her younger sister, Marjorie, played outside in the street, (it was safe then). The apartment the family lived in had an ice box in the wall and ice delivered regularly. Her father’s brother, Frank La France, became her stepfather.
The family moved to another part of town, bigger apartment, and lived there until the war was over. This place had a refrigerator! Joyce, her
sister, and the neighbor girls played on the roof of this building, and on the fire escape. The building was three stories tall.
Entertainment was walking to the movie on Saturday night because of gas rationing. After the war was over the family moved to Auburn, WA. Joyce then entered junior high school in eighth grade and continued until graduation from high school. Joyce was a majorette and participated in many parades. Her best friend Marlene was also a majorette. She graduated from Auburn High School in 1951. She was introduced to Albert Green and was married on January 5, 1952.
As a military wife, she moved! Then she started having babies: David in Nov 1952, Christine in Oct 1953, Daniel in Nov 1955, Diana in May 1958 and Dale in Mar 1962. Al, and Joyce, got stationed at McChord AFB, WA in 1953, moved to Hill AFB, UT in 1962 then back to McChord AFB in 1969. Then, she stayed in Tacoma/Lakewood for the rest of her life.
Joyce was a good mother and about half the time she was on her own when Al was on military trips as a Flight Engineer. She had to deal with heartache when Christine was born with Hydrocephalus, water on the brain. Christine passed away 1 month shy of her 4th birthday. The rest of the children were as rambunctious as ever, always getting into mischief. She raised 4 veterans!
She never worked outside the home but volunteered at Madigan Military Hospital in the Plastic Surgery Clinic. She liked to read, sew, garden, bowl, camp and parachute! She loved bowling and was able to bowl many years. In Utah, she learned to parachute in the Parachute Club. Then, Al decided to try it, and he got so scared, he made her quit. “Your not leaving me with 4 kids!”
When the kids were growing up, Joyce and Al and the kids camped all over the West. When the kids left, Joyce and Al started going to see the world by cruising, plane trips and car trips. When she was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease, they decided that they would stay home.
Joyce lost her husband of 70 years, Al in June 2022. She had 2 more children who passed away, Christine in 1957 and David in 2006. She is survived by sons Daniel and Dale Green, daughter Diana Francois and her sister, Marjorie La France. She left 2 grandchildren, Frank Francois V and Christine (Francois) Rennhofer and 5 great grandchildren, Frank VI and Elijah Francois, and Lola, Lily and Harry Rennhofer.
A service of remembrance will be held on February 9, 1:30 pm, at Mountain View Cemetery in Lakewood, WA.
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