Shantz, Joyce Vivian passed away on May 22, 2021 in Bloomington, MN at the age of 92. Joyce was born on June 7, 1928 in Tyler, Minnesota. She was the first- born child of Alfred and Ceal (Ries) Lund. She grew up on the Lund farm in Marshfield Township. After graduating from Tyler High School she completed a secretarial training program in Minneapolis. She married Leon Schnell of Tyler MN in 1948. They raised three sons: William, Robert, and Timothy. Joyce was a diligent gardener and canned prodigious amounts of vegetables, jellies, and dill pickles every summer. She was also a talented seamstress and conducted a custom sewing business. At first she operated from the family home, but her independent and entrepreneurial spirit led her to open Joyce's Sewing Box on Main Street in Tyler. Her business was successful, and she decided to move it to a larger market in nearby Marshall, MN. Joyce was fearless and at age 49 joined a flying club, which was based at the local airport. She took flying lessons and got her pilot's license in 1977. She enjoyed flying to fabric markets in the Midwest and loved taking family and friends up for a bird's eye view of the world. Some years later Joyce decided to change careers; she moved to Bloomington MN and after a stint as a realtor worked as an administrative assistant. When her church organized a mission trip to Tanzania, she jumped at the opportunity to explore such an exotic part of the world. She met Derril Shantz in Bloomington in 1995, and they were married a year later. They both liked to golf and shared a love of travel. They made several trips to Europe and especially enjoyed cruises on the Rhine River. After Derril retired they began spending winters in Venice, Florida. Joyce still had sewing in her blood; she always had multiple sewing machines wherever she lived and developed a passion for quilting. She was preceded in death by her parents and her son Tim. She is survived by her husband Derril, sons William (Mary) Schnell and Robert (Leslie Johnson) Schnell, grandchildren Jana (Marissa) Petrarca, Johanna (Marcos Negrao) Schnell, and Laura (Zachary Duket) Schnell, great grandchildren Caroline and Ethan Cottrell, Maya, Benjamin and Luana Negrao, and Easton Duket; daughter-in-law Karol (Claes) Almroth, sons-in-law Kasey Shantz, Kevin (Cheryl) Shantz, and Kelley (Donna) Shantz, grandchildren-in-law Tyler (Ashley) Shantz, Aron, Bennet, and Calvin Shantz, Emmalee and Melody Almroth, great grandchild-in-law Scarlett Shantz and very special niece Julie (Charlie) Zimmeth. Special thanks to the staff at Presbyterian Homes, who watched over Joyce in Memory Care and showed such compassion during her hospice stay. A celebration of Joyce's life is to be held at Oak Grove Presbyterian Church in Bloomington on 6/18. Due to Covid restrictions, attendance is limited to family and invited friends. In lieu of flowers, memorials preferred to the Alzheimer Assn: alz.org

Published on June 13, 2021