Marjorie Joy! Death

(Marjorie) Joy! Death

And the love story continues…

After 70 years together, Joy, 92, lost her one and only love, Frank, also 92, this past July. As much as she tried, she just didn’t want to keep dancing all by herself. She left to join him on December 29, 2024.

Marjorie Joy Frances Young was born on March 22, 1932, in Renown, Saskatchewan, to Winnifred May Lee and Arthur Myles Young. She had two older brothers who doted on little Joy – George William Wentworth Young and Robert Arthur Young. The family moved to Ireland for a short time when Joy was small, and then relocated to Vancouver, British Columbia. The exclamation point was added to her first name in 1979 when she began her new life of sobriety.

Joy met Frank at Kitsilano High School, she asked him out on their first date. She loved to tell the story of that date and the events that led up to it, and how they fell in love that very night. They were married in 1954 at St. Helen’s Anglican Church on Point Gray in Vancouver.

Joy and Frank’s first child, Murray was born while they still lived in Vancouver, BC., Canada. After moving to the United States, they had four more children, Lyle, Janet, Barb and Peggy (Margaret) while raising their family in Tonawanda, New York, then Scotch Plains, New Jersey, and eventually Mahopac, New York. The family grew over the years to include daughters-in-law Sue and Ellen and sons-in-law Mark Wright, Kevin Loughran and Doug Bourlier. Joy was a fun-loving grandmother or “Grammy” to twelve

grandchildren: Jamie, TJ, Miles, Sara, Amy, Lisa, Kelly, Brian, Kyle, Drew, John and Olivia. She also had fifteen great-grandchildren: Carter, Leo, Penny, Ellie, Paige, Levi, Lucy, Eliza, Maeve, Evelyn, Ginny, Hope, Tommy, Colette, and Pascal. She loved all her children, their spouses, grandchildren and their spouses (Steve, Baker, Larry, Tom and Joe) and great-grandchildren. She often said how amazing it was that everyone was so loving towards each other, and laughed when reminded it was because of the “500-mile rule”. She is also survived by her seven nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by both her brothers, Bill and Bob.

Together with Frank, Joy! led an active lifestyle. She loved tennis, golf, running, bowling, swimming, ice skating, canoeing, rowing, beach walking, photography, ping pong. She had a competitive spirit, beating the boys at tennis in high school, even when she was told she shouldn’t. That spirit was brought to family tournaments such as the “one-club” golf challenge and tennis matches with thrown-together matching outfits. She and Frank had a shared love of the outdoors and took the family on summer camping trips in the big canvas tent, even when they had babies in cloth diapers and kids who fought over the window seats in the family station wagon. In the late 1970s, they purchased a cottage on a lake in the Adirondack Mountains that was forever labeled simply “camp”. Grandkids and great-grandchildren continue to make memories there to this day.

Joy! and Frank were a true team in all they did in life. They loved to be together and had many adventures raising a family, followed by many active happy retirement years – much of it spent in Jupiter, Florida. Joy took up motorcycling in her late 50s, and Frank joined the fun on his own bike. They enjoyed long scenic rides on their bikes in Florida and the Adirondack mountains until age 82. Joy learned to row in a single scull at age 79 and took her last turn around the lake at age 91. She and Frank golfed together into their 90s, playing their last round just this past February at their home course Hobe Sound Golf Club. They loved to dance whenever they got a chance. Joy! was unable to stand still if a peppy tune began playing.

Not only did Joy raise five children, but she was also a quiet leader for many. From helping women to succeed at the Women’s Center in Mahopac, to being an alcoholism counselor, to hosting Joyspace women’s retreats, as well as leading “Joys Jocks” to stay fit, and to organizing walks to support Gratitude House, Joy was always providing ways for people to come together and support themselves and one another. Early in her career she was a lab assistant at the University of British Columbia, working with animals. She had a great affinity towards animals, she loved horses, dogs, all the family pets

and especially her one little gecko friend who would show up each morning on her Florida patio for his daily blueberry.

Joy! loved to laugh, often to the point of tears at any silly story or antic. She always took the stairs over the elevator. She advocated for eating dessert first. She said that chocolate was her favorite vegetable (made from beans). She was passionate about acceptance, freedom, and kindness. She signed off on emails “gottagolive”.

The family will hold a celebration of life for Joy at a later date. We are sure there will be countless stories of how she impacted many lives with her quiet demeanor, good sense of humour and sensitive listening skills.

Mom/Grammy will live forever in each of us.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to a charity of your choice.