Mary Joy Rose was her actual name but she never went by Mary. Joy was born in Kimball, South Dakota to George Dusenbury Rose and Nellie Elbertie Minor Rose. She had four siblings; George Dwight, Helen Mary, U.S. Army Lt. Owen Minor Rose and Albert, who perished as an infant. Owen died of pneumonia in France during World War I. Joy graduated from the University of South Dakota and led the life of a spinster school marm beginning in the proverbial one room school house, she also taught Sunday School. After her father passed away in 1919, her very demanding mother insisted she stay at home as her companion and care keeper. In the 1940's Joy attempted suicide by running her car while parked in a closed garage but a passerby heard the automobile running and intervened. Joy was forced to retire from teaching at age sixty and when her mother passed away in 1955 Joy moved to San Jose, California to live with her brother George and his wife Helen. The relationship of the two women under one roof was sometimes a difficult one, but Joy, who was childless, had many nieces and nephew visitors to indulge with candy and toys. She could always be counted on to baby-sit and helped tutor neighbor children. Over the years spent in San Jose, Joy received many letters and some visits from past students of hers. When her brother George passed away in 1973 it was apparent that Joy would have to find her own place to live. Long saddled with painful gout and problems with her feet due to wearing hand me down shoes as a child, Joy moved to a senior assisted living home in Los Gatos. During this time Joy had few visits from local relatives. Her mental and physical state deteriorated over the next couple of years and she was moved twice, going to facilities that could handle her worsening condition. At the end she had trouble remembering the present but would often speak of being at picnics with her father, pleasant memories of childhood blotting out the realty of her existence. She died at age 83 and was interred near her brother and sister-in-law in the Palm Circle area of Oak Hill Cemetery in San Jose.
Mary Joy Rose was her actual name but she never went by Mary. Joy was born in Kimball, South Dakota to George Dusenbury Rose and Nellie Elbertie Minor Rose. She had four siblings; George Dwight, Helen Mary, U.S. Army Lt. Owen Minor Rose and Albert, who perished as an infant. Owen died of pneumonia in France during World War I. Joy graduated from the University of South Dakota and led the life of a spinster school marm beginning in the proverbial one room school house, she also taught Sunday School. After her father passed away in 1919, her very demanding mother insisted she stay at home as her companion and care keeper. In the 1940's Joy attempted suicide by running her car while parked in a closed garage but a passerby heard the automobile running and intervened. Joy was forced to retire from teaching at age sixty and when her mother passed away in 1955 Joy moved to San Jose, California to live with her brother George and his wife Helen. The relationship of the two women under one roof was sometimes a difficult one, but Joy, who was childless, had many nieces and nephew visitors to indulge with candy and toys. She could always be counted on to baby-sit and helped tutor neighbor children. Over the years spent in San Jose, Joy received many letters and some visits from past students of hers. When her brother George passed away in 1973 it was apparent that Joy would have to find her own place to live. Long saddled with painful gout and problems with her feet due to wearing hand me down shoes as a child, Joy moved to a senior assisted living home in Los Gatos. During this time Joy had few visits from local relatives. Her mental and physical state deteriorated over the next couple of years and she was moved twice, going to facilities that could handle her worsening condition. At the end she had trouble remembering the present but would often speak of being at picnics with her father, pleasant memories of childhood blotting out the realty of her existence. She died at age 83 and was interred near her brother and sister-in-law in the Palm Circle area of Oak Hill Cemetery in San Jose.
