Joyce Arlane Jacobson

She was born and raised in the Karlstad area of northern Minnesota. As a young adult, she moved to Duluth and there she met her future husband, Melvin (Jake) Jacobson.

They raised their children in the Minneapolis area, where she was active in Garden Club, took lead roles in her daughters' Girl Scout troops, and was passionately active in local politics.

She fostered family traditions and created new ones. She was the mother that everyone wanted; the mother that every little girl dreams of being. She not only loved to sew, garden, preserve, cook, and bake; these were her passions. Her skill and passion for the homemaking arts lives on in many within her extended family. No gathering was complete until everyone had their fill of her delicious culinary creations. No neighbor was considered welcomed until they had become a friend. She taught her children to live life with passion for whatever they chose to do, with love for each other and for everyone around them, and with a generosity of spirit.

She loved to explore new recipes, new cultures, and new landscapes. She introduced her family to the delights of tent camping, photography, and gave them the gift of travel. The passion for travel was nurtured while visiting national and state parks across the US in a '65 Chevy wagon.

In later life, she moved to Texas with her husband. They continued to travel, hiking Diamond Head in Hawaii, cruising the Rhone, Rhine, and Danube areas of their roots, and deepening their love of the desert SW through hiking and backpacking in Big Bend and Canyonlands. A trip that held a special place in Joyce's heart was a Nile cruise, which fulfilled a high school dream of seeing Egypt.

During retirement, she and Jake traveled across the country visiting family and reclaiming memories through words and photographs. This renewal and strengthening of connections within the family tree was her mission.

She was a strong, determined woman who defeated cancer three times with optimism and without complaint. This very special woman will be greatly missed by all who knew her.

Joyce was preceded in death by her husband, parents, step-mother, and infant son Randy.

She is survived by her children, Victoria Noble (Tom), Candace Schlueter (Rick), Deborah Mock (Don), and Neil Jacobson (Bertha); 10 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren; brothers, Roger Bjerk (Joyce), Jack Bjerk (Pat), Terry Bjerk (Carol); and a wealth of cherished family members and friends.

The memorial service will be held this summer, when she and her husband will be interred beside their son Randy at Fort Snelling National Cemetery, St. Paul, Minnesota.