Joyce Burchfield Wood

Joyce was born to Elijah and Lena Burchfield on April 10, 1927. After graduation from Phillips High School, she entered the University of Alabama where she studied Counseling. She received her associates degree in secondary education and went on to complete her associate of arts degree in Guidance and Counseling from Samford University.

Joyce taught at Shades Valley High School where she later became the Senior Counselor. She was a member and president of the Jefferson County Counselors Association, Delta Kappa Gamma Educational Fraternity and was Alabama's Representative to the College Board for three years. She was very proud of her career as a counselor and was honored to help so many young people.

Joyce married her college sweetheart, Dixon Holman Nabors Sr., and went on to give birth to their first son, Dixon Holman Nabors Jr. Unfortunately, shortly after their son's birth, Dixon Sr. was lost in action during the Korean War. After this tragic loss, Joyce and Dixon Jr. relocated to Texas.

After several years of teaching in Beaumont, Texas, Joyce returned to Birmingham, where she was employed by the Alabama Power Company as a secretary. During her interview for this position, she met the second love of her life, Thomas "Tom" Milton Wood Sr. Together they raised Dixon Holman Nabors Jr., along with Thomas “Tommy” Milton Wood Jr. and Alan Lafayette Wood. Tom and Joyce spent many glorious years of marriage together before his passing in 2017.

Joyce was an avid reader, gardener, and traveler. She was also a lover of white cats and word puzzles. When she wasn’t reading a book or working on a crossword puzzle, she was watching a Hallmark Channel movie or Secrets of the Zoo.

Joyce had always been an animal lover. When she took her cats to be sheared, she would tell her friends and family not to laugh because “He will know you are laughing at him and you’ll hurt his feelings.” She was sensitive to others' needs and feelings - both human and animal alike. She was a friend to all even if someone was not as good a friend to her. She would place herself in others' perspectives to try to understand how she could best help them.

Along with being a people and animal lover, Joyce was also a very talented gardener. Tom and Joyce’s neighborhood would hold a Garden of the Year contest, where Joyce Wood won almost every year.

A devout Christian, Joyce wove God into her daily life and gave Him the glory at every opportunity. She did her best to attend every Sunday service and Bible study class.

Joyce is preceded in death by her father and mother, Elijah and Lena Burchfield, and her two sisters, Jean Burchfield (McFarland) and Norma Burchfield (Cooper). She is at last rejoined with the two loves of her life, Dixon Holman Nabors Sr. and Thomas Milton Wood Sr.

Joyce is survived by her three sons, Dixon Holman Nabors Jr., Thomas "Tommy" Milton Wood Jr., and Alan Lafayette Wood, along with countless grandchildren, great-grandchildren, cousins, nieces and nephews.

Visitation will be held 5-7 p.m. on Tuesday, September 20, 2022 at Ridout's Southern Heritage Funeral Home in Pelham, Alabama. A public memorial service will be held at 12 noon on Wednesday, September 21, 2022 at Christ Church United Methodist, Birmingham, followed by a graveside service at 2 p.m. at the Alabama National Cemetery in Montevallo.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Oak Mountain Mission Ministries Inc., a ministry that was near and dear to both Joyce and Tom Wood's hearts. They both spent many hours volunteering at the Oak Mountain Mission and would often coax their friends and family members to come volunteer as well.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at Joyce Burchfield Wood's memorial page at www.SouthernHeritageFunerals.com for her family.