Lex Talamo

Shreveport Times

Update:

Funeral services and visitation hours have been announced for friends and family of Elizabeth Joyce.

Visitation will be held on Friday, Jan. 22 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Osborn Funeral Home on Southern Avenue. The funeral service will take place on Saturday, Jan. 23, at 1:00 p.m. at First United Methodist Church on Common Street.

Elizabeth Joyce spent much of her time volunteering with Volunteers of America, a spiritually-based nonprofit dedicated to helping those in need. Lisa Brandeburg, who worked with Elizabeth Joyce at VOA, said she was particularly dedicated to donating her time to children's services. Family added she spent much of her energy on a group of young people referred to as the "Lighthouse Kids," whom she mentored from childhood to adulthood.

"What made it real for me was every Mother's Day, when kids would catch buses and ride their bikes to bring her cards and flowers," Brandeburg said. "She wasn't officially assigned to any of these kids, but she wanted to know up until the end how they were doing."

Brandeburg said Elizabeth Joyce had told her that her father, who died of cancer, told Joyce some of his best moments had come from the time he spent volunteering with VOA. Brandeburg said Joyce had already been involved with the organization, but her dedication deepened from there. Joyce never volunteered because she wanted recognition, Brandeburg said.

"She liked to be under the radar. She was very genuine and spiritual," Brandeburg said. "For Elizabeth, she just wanted to make sure that things were right and just, that whoever she came in contact with was as happy as they could be. She did so much for the community, for helping underprivileged children."

For those who would like to donate to VOA in her memory, on-line giving and gifts can be made in Elizabeth’s name on the site at www.voanorthla.org or by calling 318-221-2669. Checks also may be mailed to Volunteers of America North Louisiana, 360 Jordan Street, Shreveport, Louisiana.

Update:

Elizabeth Joyce — a Shreveport attorney, advocate and author known for her charm, quick wit and passion for helping those in need — died Wednesday after a prolonged battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. She was 55.

"She was sharp as a tack and witty to the end," her husband Bill and son Jack Joyce wrote in remembrance released through Moonbot Studios. "She never hesitated to help people who were at the most desperate edges of poverty. And she did so with genuine grit, grace and determination."

Elizabeth Joyce, whose full name was Frances Elizabeth Baucum Joyce, grew up in Shreveport. She attended Saint Vincent's and later college and law school at LSU Baton Rouge. Joyce practiced as an attorney and social worker in Shreveport. Kay Cowden Medlin, who worked with Elizabeth at Blanchard Walker law firm in Shreveport, remembered her as an amazing, smart and creative woman.

"She was unconventional in a conventional setting. She practiced law, and she was good at it," Medlin said. "The thing about Elizabeth is that she could do anything she wanted to, and she did."

Despair, hope, joy: Elizabeth Joyce shares lessons on living and dying from her daughter

Elizabeth Joyce also donated much of her time to Volunteers of America, a spiritually-based non-profit organization focused on providing local human service programs. She also contributed her time to Moonbot Studios, a multi-platform storytelling studio in Shreveport. Her husband, Bill Joyce, is co-founder of Moonbot.

"Elizabeth Joyce was a part of the heart and soul of Moonbot. From the very beginning, she was a guiding light for us and we owe her a huge debt of gratitude," wrote Lampton Enochs and Brandon Oldenburg from Moonbot Studios. "We'll miss her terribly."

Joyce also wrote a memoir, "With Love and Fury: How My Fierce Daughter Taught Me To Live and Die," that honored the life of her daughter Mary Katherine, who died from a brain tumor at age 18.

In a chapter on hope, Joyce wrote: "Hope. Hope f*cks with you. It is such a struggle to know whether to hope or not. How can you not have hope? You can't live without hope."

The Joyces remembered Elizabeth as a woman who made an indelible mark on Shreveport, who touched the lives of everyone she met.

"She charmed diplomats, fast food workers, presidents, check-out folks at the grocery store, movie stars, captains of industry, and every person she ever met," the family wrote. "She got things done in a way that made everyone feel like they had won. She was everything the South and Shreveport could be proud of."

Laura Noland-Harter, a longtime friend, called through tears to share her thoughts about the contribution Elizabeth Joyce had made to the world.

"We really need to continue her legacy of helping others and never forget what a caring and compassionate person she was," Noland-Harter said. "Her life was all about living life to the fullest. It is important that we all remember her and what a person she was."

The family said those who wish to honor Elizabeth Joyce's memory can support her mission by being an advocate for those in need. Those who are interested in updates about Elizabeth Joyce's memoir "With Love and Fury: How My Fierce Daughter Taught Me To Live and Die" can subscribe at http://withloveandfury.com.

Original story:

Elizabeth Joyce, an author and wife of author and animator Bill Joyce, has died, The Times has learned.

Moonbot Studios, co-founded by Bill Joyce, released a statement on the family's behalf Wednesday.

'Elizabeth said goodbye this afternoon surrounded by friends and loved ones after a long battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). She was sharp as a tack and witty to the end.

She made an indelible mark on Shreveport as attorney, and social worker. She never hesitated to help people who were at the most desperate edges of poverty. And she did so with genuine grit, grace and determination. Our family hopes she will be remembered for the work she did with the VOA Lighthouse. For those who wish to honor her memory, we ask that they help carry on her mission to be an advocate for those who are in need.

Along with our friends and family, we are working to bring Elizabeth’s memoir “With Love and Fury: How My Fierce Daughter Taught Me to Live and Die” into publication. To be notified of updates, please sign up on our mailing list at http://withloveandfury.com

She was a fun woman. Amazingly good company with an easy charm and a rapier wit. She charmed diplomats, fast food workers, presidents, check-out folks at the grocery store, movie stars, captains of industry, and every person she ever met. She got things done in a way that made everyone feel like they had won. She was everything the South and Shreveport could be proud of."

– Bill & Jack Joyce'

With Love and Fury; foreward from William Joyce

William Joyce�s tribute to his daughter