Joyce Williams

MOUNT HOREB - The greatest love story you’ve never heard began on the Fourth of July in 1955, when a farm girl fresh out of high school walked into a gas station and met a small-town boy, there to visit a friend. She thought he was cute so she squirted some ketchup on him, launching a tale for the ages.

Their love story turned the page to the next mysterious chapter in the early-morning hours of April 16, 2022, when Patricia Joyce (Slaney) Williams, 84, beloved wife, cherished mother, adored grandmother and great-grandmother, passed away as her husband of 66 years held her hand with their children at her side at BeeHive Homes of Mount Horeb.

Joyce was born May 27, 1937, at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Dodgeville, the ninth of Thomas William and Myrtle (Sole) Slaney’s 10 children. She grew up on the Slaney family farm between Mount Horeb and Verona, where she developed an exceptionally strong work ethic that she would carry with her the rest of her life. She often preferred slipping away from household chores with her mother and sisters to join her father in the barn, where she enjoyed singing to the cows as she milked them.

She got her early education at Verona’s White school near the family farm, and when that building burned down, she finished grade school in Mount Vernon. She attended high school in Mount Horeb, graduating with the Class of 1955.

She met her lifelong love, David Williams of Dodgeville, at that gas station on the Fourth of July the summer after graduation. The pair encountered one another again at a dance at Club 18 a month later, when Dave asked Joyce out. Their first date came days later, when they traveled to a Braves-Cardinals game at County Stadium in Milwaukee, the first of countless ballgames the two would attend together.

They were engaged four months later, and married on Feb. 11, 1956, at St. Andrew Catholic Church in Verona.

Joyce and Dave settled in Dodgeville as the children began arriving - 10 in 12 years - before moving in 1967 to Mount Horeb, the community they would call home for the rest of their life together. She often told the kids, “Don’t make me lose my Irish temper,” but in reality was exceedingly patient with her children, instilling in them the virtue of kindness and the value of hard work. She rousted them in the mornings by standing in each bedroom doorway with a chipper announcement, “Good morning sunshine, time to get up!” All of the children had daily household chores, but she made sure they had free time to pursue their own interests, and she supported them wholeheartedly in all their endeavors.

Their second daughter had her first child when Joyce was 40, thrusting her into a role she was a natural for - that of a grandmother. She referred to her grandchildren, 22 in all, as “Grandma’s Angels,” and loved them all equally and unconditionally. She relished soliciting hugs and kisses from the grandkids, and spoiling (and feeding) them every chance she got. As her grandchildren began their own families, she enjoyed time with her great-grandkids, who now number 10.

She worked a number of different jobs - receptionist, office manager, bookkeeper - over the years; among her favorite positions was working in the nursery at St. Joseph’s, where she would rock newborn babies to sleep. Nurses said they’d always know when Joyce was working, as the maternity ward would be calm and quiet. She worked evening jobs until her youngest child was in school, ensuring that she could stay at home during the day with the little ones while her husband was at work.

She found her professional calling late in life as a Realtor. After losing a bookkeeping position to outsourcing, she decided to act upon a longtime interest and delve into real estate. In her late 50s, she took classes to obtain the requisite certifications and licenses, and in short order, she was outworking fellow Realtors decades her junior, and outproducing colleagues and competitors who had significantly more experience.

Joyce and Dave were longtime members of St. Ignatius Catholic Church in Mount Horeb, where a veteran priest once hailed them as the best parents in the parish. She exemplified her devout faith in the way she lived. She was known for reciting the Hail Mary prayer whenever she wanted to feel the lord’s presence, in moments big or small, and taught her children to rely upon Hail Marys for comfort whenever they were frightened or worried.

She was fiercely proud of her Irish heritage, and savored a trip to Ireland with her daughter Joan in 2001.

As their first date foreshadowed, Joyce and Dave spent the first 50 years of their marriage going to various sporting events, be it Braves, Brewers, Badgers, or all of their kids’ and grandkids’ activities. She particularly enjoyed attending Badgers basketball games, men and women, and even traveled to a few Final Fours.

As she neared retirement, however, she expressed an interest in doing something other than going to ballgames. When Dave asked what she had in mind, Joyce said she wanted to go dancing. So they did. Whether it was a Friday night in at the New Glarus Hotel or Turner Hall in Monroe or a weekend trip to Marshfield or Minnesota, they spent a few years chasing the music and dancing. To see them polka together was to witness the joy shared between perfect soulmates.

In addition to Joyce’s lifelong sweetheart, Dave, survivors include her children, Rae (Bill) Thousand of Mount Horeb, Lynn (Dan) McMahon of Mount Horeb, Dave Williams of Dodgeville, Pat (Dave) Haack of Pine Bluff, Joan Williams of Mount Horeb, Tom (Beth) Williams of Lake Mills, Jerry (Karie) Williams of Franklin, Gail (Paul) Johnson of Amery and Rich (Mary) Williams of Oconomowoc; her son-in-law, Terry Droessler of Columbus; her grandchildren, Jason McMahon, Ariann (Paul) Morschauser, Benjamin Biggerstaff (Wittnee Linscheid), Jake (Jaci) Haack, Jordan Haack, Katy McMahon (John Richmond), Melina (Steve) Hanson, Michael (Ashley) Thousand, Jackson (Megan) Johnson, Gavin Droessler (Sarah Stinski), Hunter Williams (Kate Weitzer), Peyton Williams (Taylor Waugh), Samantha Johnson, Maeve Droessler, Merek Williams, Teagen Williams, Zac Williams, Alex Williams, Sydney Williams and Grace Williams; her great-grandchildren, Caden, Hudson and Nolan Morschauser, Nash, Collins, Tuff and Crew Haack, Benson and Eysley Biggerstaff, and Finnegan Hanson; brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, Lorna Slaney, Lois Slaney, LaVern Ballweg, Earl (Betty) Williams, Helen (Bob) Schuerman, Leslie (Diana) Williams, Dick (Peg) Williams and Ruth Derrick, and former sisters-in-law, Mary Svoboda and Carolyn Slaney; and 36 nieces and nephews and their families.

Joyce was preceded in death by her parents; her daughter, Sue; her grandsons, Matt and Chris; her brothers and sisters, Lyle, Maurice, Agnes, Erma, George, Marjorie, Monica, Marcella and Bill; and her brothers-in-law, Paul Backes, Charles Sarahan, LeRoy Faultersack and Joe Derrick.

Visitation for Joyce will be Tuesday, April 19, 2022, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at GUNDERSON CAMACHO FUNERAL AND CREMATION CARE, 500 N. Eighth St., Mount Horeb. A funeral Mass will be held Wednesday, April 20, 2022, at 11 a.m. at ST. IGNATIUS CATHOLIC CHURCH, 109 S. Sixth St., Mount Horeb, with Father Chahm Gahng presiding, with an additional visitation hour from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. prior to the service. A private graveside service at Calvary Catholic Cemetery will follow the Mass, with a luncheon open to all of Joyce’s family and friends, including further fellowship and remembrances, to take place afterward at the church.

The family would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude toward the staff of BeeHive Homes and Agrace HospiceCare for their extraordinarily compassionate care of Joyce.

Those wishing to honor Joyce with a memorial donation can direct a gift to the University of Wisconsin’s Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, the American Cancer Society, the Muscular Dystrophy Association or the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Online condolences may be made at www.gundersonfh.com.

Gunderson Camacho Mount Horeb

Funeral & Cremation Care

500 N. Eighth St.

(608) 437-5077