Joyce G. Schmidt, nee Gauger, 71, of the town of Trenton, was called home to be with her Lord and Savior on Saturday, February 2, 2013.
She was born on September 2, 1941 in West Bend to the late Ruben and Ada (nee Miller) Gauger. She grew up on the family farm in the town of Trenton and graduated from West Bend High School in the Class of 1959. Joyce was united in marriage to James A. Schmidt on May 7, 1960 at Trinity Lutheran Church - Pleasant Valley Rd. in the town of Jackson.
Joyce was a member of Pilgrim Ev. Lutheran Church in West Bend and she had also been a member of the Pilgrim Lutheran Ladies Guild. She was a member of the Myranettes Homemakers Club for many years. Joyce enjoyed cooking and baking and was known far and wide for her German potato salad and Hershey Bar torte. She loved going to antique stores and rummage sales and spending time in her garden. She loved the Brewers and the Packers and finally received Packers season tickets in 2001 after waiting 30 years. She also enjoyed playing Sheepshead and Sequence. Joyce's children and grandchildren were the joy of her life and she loved attending their activities. In addition, she and Jim spent many happy times at their favorite restaurants, NoNo's and Januli's, where they formed special friendships.
She is survived by her husband, Jim; three children, Julie (Tom) Woltring of West Bend, Jackie (Dave) Loescher of Merton, and Jon (Lynn) Schmidt of West Bend; seven grandchildren, Mitchell (Sarah) Woltring, Thaddeus (Kayleigh) Woltring, Bridget Woltring, Maxwell Loescher, Madeline Loescher, Andrew Schmidt and Luke Schmidt; a great-grandson, Jack Woltring; three sisters, Judith Osborne of New Berlin, Janean (Fred) Shirley of Vicksburg, MS, and Janice Gauger of Nederland, CO; a brother, Leslie (Frances) Gauger of Phoenix, AZ; two brothers-in-law, Ray (Barb) Schmidt of Juneau, and Jerry Schmidt of West Bend; five Godchildren, Laurie Gauger, Debbie (Kurt) Meinert, Sarah Fisher, Peter Schmidt, and Jillian Shirley; other relatives and many dear friends.
She was preceded in death by her parents, a brother, Lewis Gauger, and her parents-in-law, Harvey and Margaret Schmidt.
A funeral service in remembrance of Joyce will be held on Saturday, February 9 at 1:00 p.m. at Pilgrim Ev. Lutheran Church, 462 Meadowbrook Dr., West Bend. Rev. Joseph Fisher and Rev. Christopher Raffa will officiate and entombment will follow at Washington County Memorial Park, West Bend. Visitation will be at the Myrhum - Patten Funeral Home, 1315 W. Washington St., West Bend, on Friday, February 8 from 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. and also at the church on Saturday from 10:30 a.m. until the time of service.
Memorials to the National Pancreatic Cancer Foundation (NPCF, P.O. Box 1848, Longmont, CO, 80502, www.pancreaticcancerfoundation.com), The Kathy Hospice - West Bend, or Pilgrim Ev. Lutheran Church would be appreciated.
Joyce's family would like to express a special thank you to Dr. Gibson, Dr. Mooney, and the staff of the Kathy Hospice for their care and kindness.