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In the end, the single cause about which Joy Tomkinson cared the most and fought for the hardest may have eluded her.

A social activist who often advocated for her Greenboro neighbours’ tenants’ rights and who this summer organized a walkathon to raise funds for Harmony House, died on Tuesday afternoon, more than seven months after Joel, her service dog, was taken from her without even a moment to say goodbye.

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She was 63.

Tomkinson, who suffered peripheral artery disease — a narrowing of her arteries — had undergone numerous bypass and double-bypass operations. In 2008, her right leg was amputated. In 2014, her left was removed. In between those amputations, in 2012, she acquired Joel, a Labrador-golden retriever mix, from the Canadian Guide Dogs for the Blind.

“When Joel came into my life, it was like being independent,” she recalled last April. “I could go shopping. He could pick up things I drop. If I needed the phone, I’d say, ‘Go find the phone,’ and he’d go get it and bring it back to me.” Joel could transfer her laundry from the washer to the dryer, and bring it to her when it was done. He would tug at her jacket sleeve when she had difficulty removing it. He could pick a credit card or dime up off the floor.