Joyce Hurley Wood

Joyce Hurley Comstock was born on Nov 28, 1923 in Tampa, FL, the daughter of Alvin and Ruby (Poppler) Comstock. She was named after one of her relatives, and although she was often teased about her unusual middle name, she always said it could have been worse…she COULD have been named Joyce Zaruah after her grandmother.

She attended Parker Middle School, where she enjoyed playing softball, and she graduated from MacKenzie High School in Detroit, where she was an excellent student and a member of the Latin Club. She had planned to be a nurse, and she attended Wayne State University for a year, but the first time she observed an operation she discovered that ether made her faint! She switched her plans and became a clerical worker for Ford Motor Company until 1947.

Joyce had a boyfriend who was tragically killed during WWII in the Battle of the Bulge. After this loss she quit Ford, and traveled for about a month to California with three girlfriends. On the driving trip out West, they had no less than four flat tires! She briefly thought about moving to California, but eventually got homesick for her family and returned to Michigan.

Joyce had a group of friends in high school that enjoyed bicycling, and that’s where she had really got to know Louis Wood. Lou was now in the Navy, and one day Joyce found out he was coming home on leave. She freed up her social calendar, in case he might call her during his leave… and the rest is history.

Dancing was one of the activities that Joyce and Lou enjoyed most, spending many evenings at the big band ballrooms around Detroit. One of the places they occasionally drove to was in Sarnia, Ontario, just over the Blue Water Bridge in Canada. Lou says that Joyce would always take her slippers when they went to that ballroom and when they would drive home she would put on her slippers and promptly fall asleep on his shoulder while he drove them home.

Joyce and Lou married in 1948 in Detroit. They went to Bermuda on their honeymoon and had a great time. However, when they left for their honeymoon, they had no idea where they were going to live after they returned. Lou’s father was an insurance representative, and during his sales rounds, he found a little house in Livonia, and surprised them with it when they returned from Bermuda.

Joyce and Lou raised their three daughters, Carolyn, Janice and Kathy, in Livonia. While the girls were growing up, they spent many wonderful summers on vacation at The Pines cottages on Elk Lake, near Traverse City, Michigan, part of a chain of lakes. When Lou retired in 1982, Joyce and Lou built their dream retirement home on Elk Lake and moved there in 1984. Many times Joyce would tell her children that she and Lou would wake up in the morning, look out at the lake and say, “We can’t believe we live in such a beautiful place.” Their email address is called God’s Country for good reason.

Joyce and Lou enjoyed square dancing with the Buttons & Bows, and they were long-time members of The Presbyterian Church of Traverse City. Joyce enjoyed golfing, playing tennis, bowling, swimming and cross-country skiing, and was always the best fisherman in the boat. Many times Joyce, Lou and several of the children would go out fishing in their boat and Joyce would be the only one catching any fish. She felt bad about that, so she would trade places with one of the other people in the boat…. and then she would begin to catch fish in their spot!

Some of Joyce’s fondest memories were of worldwide travels with her husband and family. They visited many countries, including England, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Greece, Australia and New Zealand. Sharing the richness of the culture, art, foods, people and landscapes of these places with her children was one of her greatest gifts to them.

Joyce believed in the power of prayer, had a strong faith and a very big heart. She had a couple of major tragedies in her life when she needed to rely on God for strength and courage. One of these was when she lost her younger sister, Lee, to cancer. The other was when her brother, Howard, his wife and three of his children were killed in a house fire. During those terrible times her faith sustained her. She always knew in her heart that she would see her loved ones again one day in heaven.

Joyce and Lou illustrated to their children, grandchildren and friends what a strong marriage should be. They enjoyed over 66 years of married life together and still treated each other with love and respect. Instead of anniversary parties, every five years they would join their children and grandchildren on a weekend getaway. Some very happy memories were made during these wonderful occasions.

*************************************************************************************************************