Rest in Peace

 The arrangements for Joyce’s church service have been made. I thought I would post the obituary that Cole, Sharon and I put together that will be posted in a variety of places including the Shelley Funeral Services website.

Joyce Joanne McDonald

Joyce Joanne (Schnoor) McDonald passed peacefully at her home in Randall, Minnesota with her family by her side on Monday, June 20, 2022.  

A funeral service, led by Pastor Michael Hartwell, will be held at the Randall Presbyterian Church on July 19, 2022 at 10am to honor her life. Her final resting place will be at Veteran’s Cemetery at Camp Ripley, Minnesota. In light of the continuing public health concerns regarding the COVID pandemic, the family kindly requests that masks be worn at this service for the safety of all.

Joyce was the 4th of 5 children born to Robert and Theresa (Schroeder) Schnoor on October 24, 1948 in Fergus Falls, Minnesota. After living in Elizabeth, Minnesota, she and her siblings Alan, Ralph, and Dale, moved with their parents to the iron range to the city of Babbitt, Minnesota, where she completed her elementary schooling at the Frank A. Emanuelson School in Babbitt, Minnesota. Joyce completed her middle and high school grades at John F. Kennedy High School in Babbitt. While she was in high school, Joyce was a cheerleader and in the school marching band for the Babbitt Knights. Joyce attended St. Cloud State University after graduation to pursue a degree in English and art. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Elective Studies.

On March 7, 1970, she married Gary Thomas McDonald in Babbitt, Minnesota.  Their only child, Cole T McDonald, was born on June 4, 1971 in Augsburg, West Germany when Gary was stationed in Neu Ulm, Germany, while serving in the U.S. Army. She has two grandchildren; Garrison Patrick McDonald, and Kylara Tegan McDonald.

Upon their return to the United States, Joyce taught English as a Second Language to adult immigrants in the St. Cloud area. She started the Laubach Literacy Reading program in St. Cloud and spent her career coordinating volunteers for the Community Education program for Independent School District #742 for 25 years. Joyce and Gary loved to play cards, go camping with Cole, and play sports on community softball teams with friends. She also played the baritone, both in the community and in church.

When She and Gary retired, they moved to their home in Randall, Minnesota and named it “Peaceful Pines.” She planted her gardens, played scrabble with Gary every day, and used it as a home base while they adventured; camping around the state.  She loved nature and exploring the outdoors, sports, flowers, birds, animals, arts and crafts. Joyce led a Randall based exercise group called the Bone Builders. She was a member of a card making group that repurposed used cards to donate to St. Gabriel’s Hospital in Little Falls, Minnesota. She continued enjoying playing the baritone, and contributed to the Tuba Christmas event for many years.

Joyce was known for her sunny and optimistic view of life. She looked for the positive sides of others and situations, and her smile and positivity were contagious. Joyce’s legacy will live on through countless memories created with family and friends.

Joyce is preceded in death by her parents, Robert and Theresa (Schroeder) Schnoor, her in-laws Thomas and Alice McDonald, her brother, Ralph Schnoor, as well as numerous aunts, uncles, cousins, and her godfather Jerry Schroeder.

Joyce is survived by her husband, Gary of Randall, her son Cole (Sharon) of Sauk Rapids, her grandchildren Garrison (LaToya) of Lake Jackson, Texas and Kylara of St. Cloud. Her siblings Margaret Tabatt of St. Cloud, Minnesota,  Dale Schnoor of Eugene, Oregon, and Allen (Chris) Schnoor of Eugene, Oregon also survive her.

In lieu of gifts or flowers, the family requests donations to cancer research or services.

A Peaceful Transition

 This one is even tougher. Joyce passed away today, 6/20/22 at 3:00 PM.

And while her illness determined that this was going to be the ultimate outcome, it is, of course difficult to say goodbye to the love of your life and best friend. The greatest gift that we were given in her passing was how peacefully she passed. The hospice staff was incredibly helpful guiding us through the process. I was pretty organized. Some of you may have noticed that about me during all of this. But hospice helped me focus on the present to be mindful of what to look for and appreciate what we had done to keep her as comfortable as possible.

Cancer cures are happening every day. Cancer research is helping people live longer. I think it is important to remember that for Joyce it has been 7 years with which she has had to cope with this disease. We thought she had beaten the odds at the 5 year mark but after a short celebration we learned that the disease had metastasized. Her original therapy, at first, had held it at bay. After learning that the cancer had spread the doctors told us that our goal was to look forward to a 6 month timeline. That was almost 2 years ago. For those of you who have followed this blog, you have seen the new alternatives that have been tried and indeed have succeeded in prolonging the time Joyce was able to be with us. So, from my perspective I would suggest that we should all remain hopeful that  science will advance the evolution of medical healing.

To all of you who have offered hope and prayers, please know that we are eternally grateful for your heartfelt concern for Joyce and for me. It was a team effort for all of us and there were small victories along the way. In the last blog I said we were at the oasis where Joyce had wanted to be at the end. We settled in and enjoyed the time together we had left. For Joyce, this is THIS journey’s end. But, with her peaceful transition she is on a new adventure that will have her body free of pain and suffering. And for that I am very thankful.

The next posting will give the information about her church service and burial.

The oasis at journey’s end

    This is a tough one. Joyce has come to the decision that she is going to start hospice since there is nothing that will help her reduce the cancer that has progressed in her body. At this time the liver and the brain are the parts being affected. The goal from the beginning was to mitigate the pain and we have been successful so far in that regard. We did not foresee the brain as part of the equation and that presents a different set of obstacles with which to deal.

    Headaches, cognitive challenges and coordination have presented themselves as formidable. We are challenging the headaches with steroids and they have helped immensely.

    The cognitive challenges and coordination are not really treatable with a prescription. Walking, while possible in the past, is not an easy task now for Joyce. Her brain will not let her process the necessary function to get her feet moving for her. What used to be automatic has to be thought out and sometimes not successful in the attempt. So moving from room to room is not an easy option at this time. The hospice staff with whom we are meeting will figure out the best place for her to be in the house moving forward.

    Communication has become a challenge for her as well. She hears and understands the first part of a conversation, but then, as she describes it, “It gets mixed up.” She is becoming limited, at times, to one or two word responses. And those have to be thought out for a while before she presents them. Other times the conversation flows pretty freely. So, as we have through all of this, we live one day at a time and are thankful for the positive days. I recognize and understand this from when my father was dealing with his Alzheimers. Joyce’s is different in that she is aware of what is going on around her but it is just difficult, at times, for her to respond in real time.

    Of course we realize this was going to be the eventual fate of her disease. It is a time of sadness but also a time of acceptance. So, here at Peaceful Pines we will provide a safe oasis where she can be as pain free as possible and cared for until her journey’s end.