We are deeply saddened to announce that our mother, Joyce Ramsay, passed away at the Purdy Pavilion care home at the University of British Columbia in the early hours of October 1, 2022. Joyce was predeceased by her husband, Geoff, on February 3rd, 2022, and her sister Peg (Marguerite) on July 6th, 2020. She died peacefully in her sleep at age 98.
Joyce was born in Wembley, England. She was doted on by her father, Victor, when her birth mother, Ellen, died just three months after Joyce was born. Joyce attended Buxlow preparatory school in Wembley where she was an exemplary student and proceeded to the Wembley School of Commerce where she became a top-notch shorthand-stenographer. She was awarded a certificate from the Royal Society in 1939 for her prowess in this field.
Joyce led an interesting and varied work life and was proud of her skills in typing and shorthand. She began her work life with Sunlife on Threadneedle Street in London and was relocated with the company to the countryside at the outbreak of World War 2. During the war she trained with the Civil Home Guard to defend London.
Joyce met her lifelong love, Geoff, while she was on vacation with her sister as a teenager at Boscombe, near Bournemouth in England in 1941. Joyce and Geoff went on to establish a correspondence during World War 2 while Geoff was serving with the Royal Air Force in Canada as part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. After the War, they were reunited and married in 1947 in Wembley. For a short time, they moved to Birmingham and then emigrated to Canada as part of a post-war emigration scheme.
Joyce worked for the Canadian Bank of Commerce in Toronto, when she and Geoff moved to the city in 1947. In 1949 the couple moved to Vancouver where Joyce became the manager’s secretary of the same bank. Joyce spent ten “happy years” out of the workforce to raise her two children, David and Ellen, and then returned to work in Vancouver and, for a brief spell, in Bedford, England (1964-5). Her employment included work as a playground supervisor, and a typist for Eaton’s department store. She then worked for seventeen years as the school secretary for Walter Moberly Annex in East Vancouver. She was a long-time member of the Vancouver Municipal and Regional Employees Union, and later the Retiree’s Association, and enjoyed many friendships with the students, teachers, and support staff.
Joyce’s many interests included singing, reading, writing, swimming, tennis, knitting and attending the symphony orchestra. She and Geoff joined St. Philip’s Anglican Church in 1951. Joyce joined the Altar Guild for many decades where she enjoyed arranging the flowers in the church. Joyce was also a regular door-to-door campaigner for the United Way. Above all though, our mother was a loving and attentive family member who cultivated a broad range of friendships with people from all walks of life. She was a happy and outgoing woman who lived life to the fullest and always spread her cheerfulness to those around her. She and her beloved husband Geoff were devoted to each other and were married for 74 years. They made many trips back to London where Joyce renewed her friendships with family and old friends. She treasured her connection with the city.
Joyce will be greatly missed by all her friends and family. She leaves behind her two children, Ellen, and David (wife Cynthia), two grandsons, Mark, and Stephen (wife Michelle, and mother-in-law Vanessa), and three great grandchildren, Joanna, Claire, and Isaiah. Joyce will always be remembered as a cheerful, kind, and loving person and a friend to many people. We’ll remember you always, Joyce.
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Joyce Ramsay December 16 1923October 1 2022..
Death notice for the town of: Vancouver, Province: Colombie britanique