JOYCE DONALD R

CW4 Donald "Don" R. Joyce was a VHPA member who died after his tour in Vietnam on 05/22/2021 at the age of 88.7
Yorktown, VA
Flight Class 55-F
Date of Birth 09/10/1932
Served in the U.S. Army
Served in Vietnam with 1 AVN CO in 62-63, JUSMAG THAILAND in 64-66, 179 ASHC in 67-68
Call sign in Vietnam GOLD EAGLE 4
This information was provided by Roger Lesch

More detail on this person: Donald Romaine Joyce was born on September 10, 1932 in Jersey City, NJ to the late Thomas and Edna Joyce. He joined the Army National Guard and was an artillery NCO until he went to active duty. Later he applied for Warrant Officer training and graduated from the 1st Helicopter Class in Fort Rucker, AL. He always loved flying, in fact, he would say... if the Army only knew that he would have flown for FREE he loved it that much. Don was a Veteran of the Vietnam War. Earned a Legion of Merit and 2 Distinguished Flying Crosses among numerous other Air Medals. In 1975 he retired as Chief Warrant Officer 4 from the United States Army. He was inducted into the Army Aviation Hall of Fame in 1986. Don was a member of the VHPA (Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association) and the USAWOA (United States Army Warrant Officer's Association). Helen Ruth Joyce was born on July 8, 1931 in Englewood, NJ to the late John and Bertha Marchinko. She met and married the love of her life, Donald Romaine Joyce, they were married 67 years. She was a loving Army wife who traveled the country and world, seeing new places, meeting new people, many of which turned into lifelong friendships, while raising their four children with lots of love and support along the way. After years of traveling they settled in VA in 1970 and Helen started a career in the banking industry, working at many banks throughout the years. In 1989, they moved to Florida to enjoy the "Sun & Fun" lifestyle where she finally retired from Sovran Bank in 1991. Her friendly and outgoing personality, always having a smile on her face and remembering her customer's names, contributed to her success in her career. She was definitely a people person or better yet a "Social Butterfly" who never knew a stranger! Along with her banking career, she also had side businesses with Tupperware, Pennyrich, Cameo, and Herbalife. Don was an avid photographer, who was published in Time Life series and won many photography awards. He was an avid reader, enjoyed solving cross-word puzzles, playing darts, he was a passionate gardener and he had "two green thumbs!" He was a wealth of knowledge, trivia buff, and enjoyed listening to Rush Limbaugh along with talk-radio hosts, visiting museums, watching golf, and answering questions on game shows .... especially Jeopardy. He delighted in telling jokes even making up his own. Don's favorite movies were Casablanca, The Godfather movies, and The Hunt for Red October. He really loved to socialize while enjoying a nice cold beer with his family and friends. Helen enjoyed spending time with her family and friends, always laughing, joking, with her beautiful contagious smile.... always loving life. She especially enjoyed "Parrot Head" weekend and other gatherings acting as the event planner making sure all the details were in place. She had many hobbies aside from being an avid reader, she enjoyed knitting, playing darts, cards, trivia nights, doing word-find puzzles, and was on a bowling league. Helen enjoyed shopping, cooking, baking cookies, parties, and spending time in the sunshine enjoying a refreshing cocktail while socializing with her family and friends. Left to cherish their memory are their children, Dennis R. Joyce (wife Amalia), Wayne M. Joyce (wife Gwen), and Ruth J. Mason (husband Fred); grandchildren, Andrew Joyce, Samantha Morgan (husband Donald "DJ"), Brittany Bushore, Mackenzie Mason, Abbie Croswell, Timothy Parrish, and Rebecca Parrish; great-grandchildren, Grayson Morgan and Adalynne Morgan; Don's brother, Russell Joyce; Helen's sister, Barbara Ruggiero (husband Ralph); and many nieces and nephews. They are preceded in death by their son, Bruce Thomas Joyce; Don's brother, Warren Joyce (wife Patricia); Don's sister-in-law, Ann Joyce; and Helen's brother, Robert John Marchinko. The family would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to the staff of the Walter Reed Convalescent & Rehabilitation Center in Gloucester for their excellent care of our father. Additionally, they would like to thank the staff of the Riverside Convalescent Center in Matthews for their loving care of our mother. A celebration of their life will be held at 11:00 a.m., Saturday August 7, 2021, at Peninsula Memorial Park. US Army Military honors will be rendered for Donald Joyce. In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made to Dementia & Alzheimer's Organizations or the Cancer Society.

This information was last updated 11/24/2021

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Date posted on this site: 03/10/2024


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