Ellickson, Joyce (Treloar) Kostman 1938 - 2020

ELLICKSON, TRELOAR, SMITH, FLAIG, BAHLMANN, WIREMAN, MEYER, HAURI, WINGERT, KNUTSON, PEREZ-KOSTMAN

Posted By: Joy Moore (email)
Date: 2/21/2020 at 20:01:36

Joyce Ellickson, age 82, of Decorah, IA, passed away peacefully Thursday evening, February 13, 2020 at Patty Elwood Center in Cresco, IA.

Funeral Services will be held at 10:30 A.M. Saturday, February 22, 2020 at Decorah Lutheran Church with Rev. Stacey Nalean – Carlson officiating. Burial will be in Lutheran Cemetery in Decorah in the spring.

Visitation will be from 4:00-7:00 P.M. Friday, February 21 at Fjelstul Funeral Home in Decorah and on Saturday beginning at 9:30 A.M., one hour before the service, at the church.

Joyce Elllickson was born on January 26, 1938 to Edward and Laura (Smith) Treloar in Sumner, Iowa. Joyce grew up with her seven brothers and sisters on a farm outside of Waucoma, Iowa. She played outside a lot, climbing trees, eating wild plums, and ice skating. She loved her horses and taught them to do tricks, including letting her ride standing up. She walked to school with her brothers, except in the deep snow when their dad would take them with a sleigh and horses. Joyce attended Waucoma High School where she received awards for her basketball playing. She wanted to become a professional basketball player or a professional ice skater.

Even though Joyce had big dreams, when she met Paul Kostman of Ludlow, IA at a roller-skating rink, she decided to get married instead. The two were united in marriage on January 19, 1957 and to this union four children were born: Laurie, Ronald, Paula, and Matthew. She always said she was happiest raising her children, whom she loved fiercely.

When her children were small, Joyce worked as a waitress at Livingood’s Supper Club in Frankville, IA. In 1980, Joyce divorced and moved to Decorah with her younger children where she worked as a clerk at the Luther College Bookshop for many years. She married Lee Ellickson on June 30, 1984 and moved to a farm outside of Decorah. Then in November of 1995, Joyce gained her sobriety, but had to give up her marriage for a second time. She moved back into Decorah to work for the Luther College custodial department for a few years. After her retirement from Luther, she worked as a housecleaner for various households around Decorah.

A prolific folk-art painter in her spare time, Joyce loved painting people and animals. She often chose unique items for her canvases, including mushrooms she found growing on trees and old saw blades. She passed this love for art onto many of her children and grandchildren.

Joyce was always very involved in church. She taught Sunday School and Vacation Bible School when her kids were small. She was part of a church circle throughout most of her adult life. She was a member of Decorah Lutheran Church in Decorah, IA for the last several decades of her life, but also would attend Canoe Ridge Lutheran Church with her special friend, Merlin Faldet. This was another source of happiness during the last 12 years of her life. The two were close companions, attending dinners at the VFW and church functions, and MD, as Joyce liked to call him, became an important part of her family’s lives as well.

One other area of life that was important to Joyce was her involvement in AA meetings. She led the noon meeting for years and years, making strong friendships with so many people. The stories from the people she helped have made her family realize what an enormous impact she has made on others’ lives.

She was preceded in death by her son Ronald Paul Kostman; parents Edward and Laura Treloar; sisters Katherine Flaig, Marion Bahlmann, and Beth Wireman; and brothers George, Clayton, and Jack.

Joyce is survived by three children, Laurie (Steve) Meyer of Green Bay, WI, Paula Kostman of Saint Louis Park, MN, and Matthew Kostman of Calmar, IA; eight grandchildren: Megan Hauri, Patrick Meyer, Jenna Wingert, Rey Kostman, Maysen Knutson, Christine Kostman, Jade Kostman, and Maya Perez-Kostman; eight great-grandchildren: Harry, Annalynn, Lincoln, Louis, Magnolia (Noli), Eleanor, Clementine, and Polyphony; one brother, Donald (Mary) Treloar of Hawkeye, IA; and special friend Merlin Faldet of Decorah.

Memorials may be directed to Alzheimer's Association National Office, 225 N. Michigan Ave., Floor 17, Chicago, IL 60601 or Catholic Eldercare (provides adult daycare for people with Alzheimer’s), Development Office, 817 Main Street NE, Minneapolis, MN 55413. For the latter, please list Joyce Ellickson in the memo line of your check.

Source: Fjelstul Funeral Home database

Lutheran Decorah Cemetery
 

Winneshiek Obituaries maintained by Bruce Kuennen.
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