Joyce (Szymanski) Russell

Joyce (Szymanski) Russell, 63, of East Hartford, beloved wife of Glenn A. Russell, passed away peacefully surrounded by her loving family on Tuesday, December 27, 2016. Joyce was born October 31, 1953 in Hartford and was the daughter of the late Stanley and Mary (Flaherty) Szymanski. Joyce was raised in Bloomfield and graduated from Bloomfield High School. Joyce and Glenn were married in Suffield on October 5, 1979, and together they raised their family in East Hartford. A loving mother, Joyce enjoyed attending her children’s field trips, softball and baseball games and all of their plays and shows. She was the superintendent of the Prospect Gardens apartments in East Hartford, and after moving from the apartments into their own house she worked at Stop & Shop in Vernon for many years. Later she enjoyed taking care of her grandchildren and helping her daughter find a house and helped her make it a home. Joyce loved nothing more than to be in the presence of her family. In addition to her husband, she is survived by her daughter, Eve M. Russell and her fiancé Tyshawn McIntosh of Manchester; her son, Daniel G. Russell and his wife Marta Raviele, along with her grandsons, James G. Russell and Daniel M. Russell of Farmington, whom she loved with all her heart. Joyce is also survived by her sisters, Sandra Beernaert and her husband Michael and Barbara Szymanski, along with her brothers Stanley Szymanski and his wife Deborah and Richard Stomsky and his wife Jacqueline. In addition, Joyce will be missed by several brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, nieces, nephews, grand-nieces and grand-nephews.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Saturday, December 31, at 10:30 a.m. at the Church of the Incarnation, 544 Prospect Street, Wethersfield. Relatives and friends are asked to meet at church. Burial will be held at a later date at West Cemetery in Somers. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in Joyce’s memory to the Defeat GBM Research Collaborative, a subsidiary of the National Brain Tumor Society at www.DefeatGBM.org. The D’Esopo Funeral Chapel is assisting the family with the arrangements. For online expressions of sympathy to the family, please visit www.desopo.com.