Joyce Denise Brown

While living in Decatur, Joyce volunteered at the Northeast Community Fund food pantry, assisted with after-school childcare at the Lutheran School Association, and became a member of St. John's Lutheran Church.

Joyce also worked as a Certified Nurse’s Assistant/CNA for several years. She provided care to elderly individuals in nursing homes and in their own homes.

Joyce retired from nursing after 20 years and relocated to live with family, first in St. Louis, then in Phoenix, Arizona with her oldest daughter, Erica. She then relocated to Oregon to live with her youngest daughter, Alesha, her husband, Noah, and her grandson.

Joyce enjoyed collecting teddy bears and other stuffed animals, spending time with her grandchildren, singing and dancing, and her favorite holiday was Christmas. She also enjoyed cooking and was known as a “food expert” by her oldest son, Reginald.

Joyce Brown passed away at Salem Hospital in Salem, Oregon on October 15, 2026 from heart failure.

She was preceded in death by her father, John William Brown Jr.; her mother, Clara Victoria Brown; and her brothers, Greg Bean and Danny Brown. She was also preceded in death by her past partner, Cornell Bailey Sr; his mother, Mary Ella Ford; and his father, Millison (Mike) Baity.

She leaves to cherish her memory: her children, Reginald “Reggie” Brown (Robbie McGhee); Erica Bailey; Cornell Bailey Jr; Alesha Sangster (Noah Sangster); and Tynnell Bailey Johnson, and her fifteen grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

She also leaves to cherish her memory: her sisters, Sylvia Monroe (Wardull Monroe); Eileen Murray; Vera Brown; Juana Gladney; and her brother, John Brown III, as well as her stepsisters, Rose Turner (Kerry Turner); and Wynell Landers. Additionally, she is survived by Cornell Sr’s sister, Beverly Spearman (Emmanuel Spearman), and Cornell Sr’s brother, Robert Blackmon (Lanette Blackmon).

Joyce will be remembered as a dedicated mother, grandmother, nurse, and caring friend. She will be dearly missed, and her legacy will carry on in her family and everyone that she has influenced in her life.