Monday afternoon, after a long struggle with Alzheimers, Joyce DeHarpporte died. Husband Ron and Joyce’s seven children were at her bedside.
Joyce played bridge in the Twin Cities for well over four decades. Joyce excelled at the duplicate table, competing with and against the best players of her era. She also enjoyed bridge in other venues, meeting with friends from both St. Paul and Minneapolis for “party” bridge.
In addition to being a lifelong lover of our game, Joyce had other passions. She and Ron traveled extensively, visiting over 50 countries. They enjoyed summers by Lake Superior and winters in Las Cruces, NM. Joyce loved to read and was always well informed on a wide variety of topics and issues.
Most of all, though, Joyce was one of the sweetest and most caring people you would ever meet. Many competitive players can be aggressive and brusque. Not Joyce. It seemed that the kind, generous and nurturing mother of seven and grandmother of eleven extended those same qualities to everyone that she would meet.
The effects of Joyce’s disease unfortunately kept her away from the bridge table in recent years. Thus, some of our newer players may not know Joyce. This is their loss. Those of us who knew her well know that our community has lost a true gem.
Ron would like everyone in the bridge community to be aware of this. Since Joyce loved family picnics, a gathering will be held at Wabun Park on Sunday, June 12 at 4:00. All are welcome to come for a short ceremony to share stories about Joyce and to remember her life. A picnic dinner will follow.
Joyce's obituary in the Star Tribune can be found here.
My condolences Ron
Posted by: Paul Gutterman | May 17, 2011 at 11:43 AM