OCTOBER 22, 1926 - NOVEMBER 21, 2011

On November 21, 2011 Mrs. Joyce Allan (nee Larson) passed away peacefully in Kamloops at the age of 85 years.

She is survived by her loving daughter Heather, (Joe) of Kamloops; her loving sons, Robert of Vancouver; Glen, (Marian) of Kamloops and Skye, (Joy) of Kamloops. Her beloved grandchildren who loved her dearly and who will miss her beyond belief, Simone, (Leilah) of Kamloops; Leah, (Enrique) of Red Deer; Andre, (Pamela) of Kamloops; Jenny, (Roberto) of Toronto; Meghan, (Dave) of Quesnel; Robert, (Hollie) of Edmonton; and Fraser of Edmonton; and her beloved great grandchildren, Olivia and Aiden to whom she was G.G.

Joyce is also survived by her two sisters, Florence of Pinantan Range and Violet of Tappen; her three brothers, Glen of Vernon; Cort of Osoyoos and Bruce of Prince George; and her many nieces and nephews; her special friends, Gus Halliday, Vimy Alexander and Mario Bertolotti of Kamloops, Margot Noelle of Calgary and Carmela Stella of Italy whom she loved as a daughter.

Mom was predeceased by her loving husband, Bob, in 1985; her parents Esther and George Larson and by her sisters, Marion, Beatrice, Irene and Phyllis; and by her brothers, Eugene, Gerald, Vernon and Dick.

Joyce was born in Beaubier, Saskatchewan in 1926 and moved with her family to locations in Saskatchewan, before settling in the Yorkton area where she grew up on the farm. She was the middle child of 14, with whom she remained close in heart through frequent family reunions. She served for two years in the Canadian Armed forces before moving to Kamloops in 1948. It was when working for the BC Forest Service that she met and married Robert Henry Allan, her beloved husband. In the early years they shared their love of Big Band music with weekly Saturday outings to the local dance hall. They enjoyed many happy summers camping and fishing and Joyce was proud of the 12 lb. Kamloops trout that she caught in Stump Lake earning her the trophy for the largest fish caught by a woman from the Kamloops Fish and Game Association. In the early years, Mom could be found cooking all manner of wild game for the annual Fish and Game banquet, including beaver, moose, sheep and cougar. Their pride and joy was their cabin at Hyas Lake that they built together by hand, and is still enjoyed by the whole family to this day.

Mom worked as a medical secretary for Dr. Hunter and then for Dr.'s Boon and Sunderland until her retirement. She obtained her driver's license when she turned 57, giving her valued independence. She gave it up on her 80th birthday. To celebrate her 60th birthday in 1986 Mom and her sister Irene embarked on a cross Canada tour in a Cadillac which took them to the Maritimes and back. She often recounted her memories of Cape Breton Island, Anne of Green Gables house and the many wonderful people she met in Newfoundland and along the way.

Grandma developed many hobbies over the years; she sewed pyjamas for her family members which she tagged "Made with Love by Grandma," and for each birthday and special occasion she lovingly prepared favourite cakes and cookies. Grandma had many creative abilities; she was a fine artist and enjoyed painting and handicrafts such as her ever expanding Christmas village. Her flower gardens flourished each spring. Grandma took pride in her Swedish heritage and over the past year she spent time designing a family tree which she was planning to give to her family upon completion. Her children, grandchildren and nieces kept her supplied with books and crosswords to support her love of reading and which maintained her mental acuity. She derived great pleasure from feeding and watching the multitude of birds that frequented her backyard bird feeders. Mom played cribbage and scrabble avidly with her sister Violet, with whom she had a running competition. She loved baseball, which she watched enthusiastically; games were usually followed by phone calls to her sisters Florence and Violet to cheer for or commiserate their favourite ball team: the Toronto Blue Jays.

Above all Joyce loved her family. She will be greatly missed but family members will take solace knowing that she is now reunited with her great love, Bob.

There will be no formal service by request, a family Celebration of Life will be held in the spring of 2012.

Should friends desire, donations would be appreciated to the Royal Inland Hospital Foundation, 311 Columbia Street, Kamloops, B.C., V2C 2T1 in memory of Joyce.

Online condolences may be expressed at www.schoenings.com.