Janet T. Joice (1948-2021)

JOICE, STEELE

Posted By: Ken Wright (email)
Date: 8/25/2021 at 13:23:42

JANET TIYA JOICE

Cedar Rapids

Janet T. Joice of Meridian, Idaho, formerly of Cedar Rapids, passed away peacefully surrounded by family on Thursday, Aug. 19, 2021, after a nine-month battle with cancer.

Janet was born March 27, 1948, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She was the only daughter and youngest child of Wesley and Frances Steele. She acquired a lifelong love of nature, animals and the great outdoors from her father. She attended Washington High School in Cedar Rapids, where she was a cheerleader until graduating in 1966. She forged lifetime friendships with her "BFF" Sheryl Trinka and many of her classmates.

She married in 1968 and had her first child, Robb, a year later. In 1976, Janet and Robb moved to sunny Southern California, where she started her career in sales as a manager for a growing paint manufacturer, Behr Paints. In 1981, she married again and had another son, Matthew. After returning to Iowa in 1985, she bought and improved a home that was around the corner from her alma matter, Washington High School. This ignited her love of restoring historic homes, specifically, two 1850s farm houses in Mount Vernon and Lisbon.

After retiring from Quest/Dex, and after several visits to see her brother, Wesley, she packed up and moved across the country to Meridian, Idaho. Her son, Robb, and grandson, Connor, joined her there in 2013, where they continued the family traditions of camping, hiking and fishing. Janet was an avid traveler and fiercely independent, two traits that came in handy when, in 2015, she took to the road hauling and delivering new trailers across the United States. Janet was deeply spiritual and found meaning in all she did, whether she was on the back of a horse, laying tile, quietly knitting, doing a crossword puzzle or throwing large parties at her farmhouse.

Those left behind to miss her dearly and cherish her memory include her son, Robb Joice and his fiancee, Korene Fifield (Nampa, Idaho); grandsons, Adam Joice (Vail, Colo.), Connor Joice (Tulsa, Okla.), and Skylar and Kayden Wemhoff (Nampa, Idaho); granddaughters, Alexee, Payton and Kinzee Youngstrom (Nampa, Idaho); brother, Kenneth (Judy) Steele (Pensacola, Fla.); nieces, Sarah (Allan) Stone (Chico, Calif.) and Stephanie (Bobby) Godfrey (Pensacola, Fla.); nephew, Jeffrey Steele (Pensacola, Fla.); cousins, Kathie Anderson (Des Moines, Iowa), LaVonne Palmer (Mesa, Ariz.), Dan Neel and Tom Neel; and many friends.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Wesley W. Steele and Frances J. Steele (Lindstrom), both of Cedar Rapids, Iowa; her beloved son, Matthew Warne and his father, Greg Warne; and her oldest brother and partner-in-crime, Wesley D. Steele.

Janet's wishes were to be cremated, with a celebration of life to take place in her backyard at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 25.