Margaret "Joyce" Beauchamp

Margaret "Joyce" Beauchamp, wife, mother, friend, magician-of-sorts, passed away on July 7, 2022, surrounded by family. Joyce was born February 9, 1936 to Andrew and Mary Cotter Derrick. She spent her first eight years in Quebec, Canada. After her father died, Joyce's mother raised Joyce and her sister, Marian, in the Bronx, New York. Joyce attended Villa Maria Academy, the same high school as Mary Higgins Clark (she always claimed). Joyce won many French and math awards. Following high school, she attended and graduated from the College of New Rochelle (New York) with a Bachelor's degree in modern languages. She also did post-graduate work in social work at the University of Michigan. One day, after some serious dental surgery, with her mouth filled with gauze, she couldn't turn down a game of bridge at the Newman Center in Ann Arbor. A young man named Norman sat down at her table, and he fell in love with her at first sight, even with a mouth filled with cotton! He was very impressed with her card skills too, so it was a no-brainer, it was in God's plans, that they should be partners for life! They married on September 10, 1960. This was quickly followed by 10 beautiful and wise children: Mark (Kathy), Stephen (Aliki), Anne (Stephen) Murray, Robert (Ruth), Thomas (Mary), James, Jeanne (Michael) DiBella, Joseph (Carly), Mary, and Michael. Each child thinks that he or she was Mom's favorite, but Mom never revealed her choice. Joyce was the mother to not only 10 outstanding children, but also had eighteen grandchildren and two great-grandchildren as well as a mother to many exchange students. She housed teens from Germany, France, Mexico, and Kazakhstan. Days at the Beauchamp house were filled with unlimited activity, fun, and love. Joyce was always tirelessly carting kids to the beach, the pools, museums, the movies, ice cream, putt-putt -- this list can just go on and on. And yet dinner was always on the table. Joyce always had to be the last to bed when all the kids were home, her reasoning: “I don't want to miss anything!” Joyce felt that caring for her children was just not enough; she still had so much to do! She became involved in every part of her community. She served on many boards including the Salvation Army Board (part of the time as Chair), St. Mary's Catholic School Board (part of the time as President), Holy Cross Catholic School Board, Port Huron Figure Skating Club Board, and a lifetime member of the American Association of University Women (part of the time as president and always a model in the fundraising fashion-show lunches). She volunteered at St. Mary's grade school (Port Huron) teaching French, Olympics of the Mind, and Junior Great Books. She volunteered with the Boy Scouts of America as a den mother for 9 years. Finally, there were all the kids' sports and activities: hockey, soccer, basketball, figure skating, tennis, even including Stephen as drummer in a heavy rock band. She would win any spelling bee with the amount of hours she spent practicing with her 10 competitive children. When the kids started growing up and moving out, Joyce got restless. She decided to pursue a real estate career and eventually found herself as an Associate Broker at Home Towne Realty in Port Huron. She became the owner of Murray Realty on Mackinac Island for several years. Joyce once wrote down her hobbies and interests. It reads as follows, “Supporting Norm in his endeavors, reading (book club), playing bridge, travel, cooking, entertaining, being entertained, socializing with friends and... Shopping! Oh, the shopping!” She was a voracious reader, and loved her local library. Norm and Joyce seemed always be playing bridge, at which she was very skilled. Then there's her travels! Joyce and Norm traveled the whole world! There is no other way to put that! Nigeria, Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Australia, Niagra on the Lake, Mexico, Ireland, and, of course, the Upper Peninsula. Joyce also traveled often to England and visited all the cities and rivers of Europe. There were numerous trips to NYC with friends and family members to see plays, musicals, museums. In 2010, Joyce and Norm visited Father Simeon Iber in Nigeria. Joyce was greatly concerned by the lack of potable water in the remote villages adopted by Father Simeon. So she made certain to provide the funding for the first deep water well, drilled for Agbatala Village of Benue State. She just had a way to touch the world, and she always had a spark, a laugh, a joke, a smile. A Celebration of Joyce’s life will be from 10-11 a.m. Friday, September 9, 2022 in Holy Trinity Parish St. Stephen Catholic Church followed by a Funeral Mass at 11:00 a.m. Father Simeon Iber will officiate. Memorial Contributions may be made to Father Simeon's Community Service Fund, P.O. Box 595354, Fort Gratiot, Michigan, 48059, a Michigan non-profit and tax-deductible organization. You can find more information at this website: One hundred percent of these funds will be utilized to drill additional water wells for Nigerian villagers.