Joyce Louise Servoss Mulligan

March 14, 2019

Service Details

Joyce Louise Servoss Mulligan passed away March 14, 2019. A prayer service will be held Saturday, May 11, 2019 at Hamilton’s on Westown Parkway, 3601 Westown Parkway in West Des Moines, IA at 10:00 a.m. Family will greet friends prior and following the service. Joyce’s remains will be scattered in the scattering gardens at Glendale Cemetery in Des Moines.

Joyce was born July 13, 1937 to Merle Servoss and Louise Sanders Servoss, the second of five children. She was raised in Denison attending St. Rose of Lima School and Denison High School, and completed several programs at the area college in Omaha.

As a young woman, Joyce worked in health care where she was a prized nurse’s aide. She had a solid work ethic and was known as a “good worker”, pleasant, and often quick to take extra shifts when needed. Later, Joyce started her own business, the first answering service in western Iowa.

In her free time, Joyce enjoyed crocheting, crafting, gardening and cooking. She could throw a handful of seed on rough ground and be rewarded with strong plants and ample yields of food or flowers. Likewise, she could cook without recipes and create tasty, wonderful food. She loved animals and admired and cared for a variety of them including birds, rabbits, cats, and dogs.

In their 20’s, Joyce married Gail Mulligan. They were overjoyed with the births of two daughters, Elizabeth and Jeannie. After the marriage ended, Joyce and Gail remained loving and caring parents to their children.

The last few years of her life, Joyce received kind and loving care at the Good Shepherd Care Center in Sauk Rapids, MN. She became somewhat comfortable and reconciled to her mental illness diagnosis and accepted her limitations with dignity and grace. Her faith, family and friends enabled her to maintain her sense of humor in spite of all she endured. In the end she died at peace with herself and her surroundings.

Joyce is survived by her daughter, Jeanne; grandchildren, Danielle, James, Michael, Tabitha, and Josua; and sisters, Kathleen and Cecilia. She was preceded in death by her parents; sister, Barbara (Neal) Moeller; brother, Michael Servoss; daughter, Elizabeth; and grandson, Jeremy.

Condolences may be expressed at www.HamiltonsFuneralHome.com.

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