Joyce Elaine Guenther , 84, of South Elgin, Illinois, passed away at the Mayo Clinic Hospital on Tuesday, October 3, 2023.

Born on March 13, 1939, in Fairbury, Illinois, she was a daughter of the late Burbon Thomas Downing and Goldena Katherine (Garland) Downing. As a young child, the family moved to Smith Twp., Whitley County, where she completed Collins Elementary School and graduated from Churubusco High School in 1957. She continued her education at a beauty college in Fort Wayne, becoming a hairstylist.

On September 8, 1963, she married David William Guenther. They made their first home in Greencastle, IN while her husband completed college. They then moved to Flushing, MI, and then to East Lansing, MI, where they raised their two children. David died on November 4, 2012. Joyce continued to live in East Lansing until 2019, when she moved to South Elgin, IL, to be closer to her daughter.

A full-time homemaker raising the children, she also provided haircare for family and friends. She was an accomplished seamstress and enjoyed playing the piano. Fond of animals, she had many dogs throughout her life and leaves behind her beloved dog, Ninja.

Surviving are her children, D. Erich Guenther of Grand Rapids, MI and Emily E. (Frank) Carbonara of St. Charles, IL; grandchildren, Leo and Sophia Carbonara; sisters, Lois Coppock of Vancouver, WA, Carol Williams of Springhill, TN and Sue Ross of Columbia City, IN.

The funeral service is at 1 p.m. Saturday, October 14, 2023, at Smith & Sons Funeral Home, Columbia City, IN. Burial is beside her husband at the Blue River Cemetery, within sight of the house where she grew up. Visitation is from 11 a.m. until the start of the service Saturday at the funeral home.

Memorials in Joyce's honor may be made to the Whitley County Humane Society.