Joyce Helen Nyman

JOYCE HELENE (SIMONSON) NYMAN September 19, 1931 ~ December 4, 2014 "Any number of complimentary adjectives could best describe this beautiful, gentle, kind and gracious soul. Her concerns were always about others and not herself." Joyce Nyman, 83, passed away peacefully at home in Vancouver, WA after a decade long battle with Myeloid Displastic Syndrome (Bone marrow and red blood cell cancer) on Dec. 4, 2014 and entered into eternal life with the Lord. Over the years, she suffered through five chemo regimens and over 100 blood transfusions. The past two years she was exhausted from the treatments but maintained a positive and cheery disposition. Joyce was born on Sept. 19, 1931, in Kelso, WA, the fourth of five siblings born to Joe and Ina Simonson. She was baptized on April 9, 1933, at Trinity Lutheran Church, Kelso, WA, and confirmed at Messiah Lutheran Church (Suomi Synod) in Portland, OR. She treasured her Finnish heritage and represented the best of that culture. After graduating from Cleveland Commerce High School in Portland in 1949, Joyce worked as a Secretary at Oregon State Board of Health until her marriage. Joyce Helene Simonson and Keith Oscar Nyman were united in holy matrimony on March 28, 1953, at Messiah Lutheran Church in Portland, OR. She worked for several companies as a Secretary in the earlier years of their marriage. With the birth of their first child, Joyce became a full time homemaker. She endured many moves and Keith's extended deployments as a Navy wife. She always quickly established a safe and nurturing home for the family. Her out-of-home activities revolved around the church in the various congregations the family belonged to during the years of military service. She was a longtime member of Trinity Lutheran Church (Missouri Synod), Portland, OR. Joyce is survived by her husband, Keith; daughter, Lisa (Jay) Knowles of Vancouver, WA; sons, Mark of Vancouver, WA and Paul (Jan) of St. Helens, OR; two grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; and sister, Gloria Faulk of Portland, OR. Internment will be at Vancouver Barracks Post Cemetery in Vancouver, WA. A Celebration of Life service will be held at Trinity Lutheran Church, 5520 N.E. Killingsworth St., Portland, OR 97218, on Dec. 13, 2014, at 11:00 a.m. A luncheon will follow the service. Please sign her guest book at: www.columbian.com/obits.

Joyce Helen Nyman

September 19, 1931 - December 4, 2014