September 19, 1934 - October 24, 2024
In loving memory ~
Joyce Elaine Munn (née Buck), passed away peacefully at Cairnsmore Place in Duncan B.C. on October 24, 2024, having lived to see her 90th birthday. Joyce was born on September 19, 1934, in Weyburn, Sask. to Joseph and Kathleen Buck (née Erikson). A sister, Arlene, and a brother, Doug, were born on the prairies.
The family moved to Vancouver in 1945. Joyce started high school at Kitsilano High. She completed high school in Hope B.C. in 1952. In her grade 12 autobiography, her goal was to be a reporter, something she did in her elder years at the extended care facilities in Duncan, interviewing her new friends and acquaintances, then publishing them for all read.
Joyce lived a full and vibrant life from beginning to end and touched the lives of many people along the way. She met her first love, William (Bill) Walter Munn, now deceased, and had four children Rob, Murray, Cathy, and Colin. A beautiful and loving wife, mother, daughter and friend, she was a joyful soul, who made friends easily wherever she lived, from the prairies to B.C. and across Canada.
Joyce moved back to her birthplace in Weyburn, Saskatchewan in 1952 to live with her aunt while taking a psychiatric nursing course. She graduated with a Diploma in Psychiatric Nursing in 1955 from the Weyburn Mental Hospital and began her work there. The hospital had become a trailblazing facility, trying new approaches to the treatment of the patients there, including redesigning interior spaces for more optimal rehabilitation as well as cutting edge treatment in vitamin therapy and LSD treatment, one of the first institutions in North America to do so. Joyce was intrigued by the changes going on and talked about how exciting her time was there.
Back in Regina, after a few years of child raising, Joyce worked with the Family Service Bureau from 1967-1979. She was in charge of home care worker placement for homes in need of help; child sitting, physical and mental disability, and the elderly disabled. Through the Family Service Bureau, Joyce made many friends with whom she stayed in touch throughout her lifetime.
Joyce and Bill went on their own paths in 1978.
Joyce met the second love of her life, Herbert (Herb) Noel Strongeagle, a First Nations man from the Pasqua Reserve in the Qu'appelle Valley of Saskatchewan. Joyce and Herb extended the family to include Herb's child, Brad, who became a son and brother. They moved around the country to the Yukon in 1980, then to Saskatoon, Regina, Winnipeg, and back to Regina, eventually settling down in a home in Cowichan Bay B.C. in 1993. Joyce began teaching life skills after earning Life Skills Coaching certification in Saskatoon years earlier (1990). They lived in the Cowichan Valley until retirement and enjoyed many happy years.
Joyce became involved in the Society of Friends (Quakers) in the mid-1960s and remained a member to the time of her passing, attending numerous conferences and meetings across western Canada. She was a member of the Cowichan Valley Monthly Meeting (Quakers) and leaves behind many good friends there, some of whom she has known for over 50 years. She also enjoyed her Cowichan Bay women's group for many years with many close friends. Early on she was a member of the Voice of Women, active in the anti-war movement. She was a big supporter of the CCF and Tommy Douglas, later the NDP. Her hobbies and interests were numerous including many outdoor excursions, camping, birdwatching and music festivals. Folk, blues, and rock and roll music were constant in the family home and as a result, all of the children played or sang music in one form or another. She was her son Colin James' biggest fan!
Joyce is survived and greatly missed by her husband Herb Strongeagle and her five children, Rob, Murray, Cathy, Colin, and Brad; daughters-in-law, Carole and Heather; grandchildren Armando, Deghan, and Ryland; sister Arlene Konrad and brother Doug Buck and his wife Maureen. She will be missed by Tina Cannon, whom she had known for many years and always considered to be another family member.
We want to thank the staff of both Ts'i'ts'uwatul' Lelum Assisted Living and Cairnsmore Place Extended Care Facility for their exemplary care of Joyce.
May Joyce's spirit fly with the doves and the hummingbirds!
