Joyce A. Willson

Joyce A. Wilson, age 90 of Wayne, passed away on Friday, August 2, 2019.

Joyce was born on Long Island in Port Washington, NY, and lived in New York City before moving to Wayne. She worked for many years in the publishing industry, most recently with John Wiley and Sons in Hoboken.

Joyce’s greatest passion was for loving, breeding, and showing her Irish Terriers. As a young girl, the family pet was a Samoyed that belonged to her brother. After the Samoyed passed away at the old age of seventeen, the house felt especially empty, so Joyce bought a Cocker Spaniel from Gimbel’s Pet Shop in New York City. Having no other way to get him home, she transported him on the Long Island Railroad. When she was in her twenties, Joyce got her first Irish Terrier. She named her Dundalk’s Scarlet O’Hara and called her Sally. For many years she showed her dogs and owned too many champion Irish Terriers to remember. But she loved them all, whether they won a championship or not. When asked who she would choose if she could have any Irish Terrier in the history of the breed, Joyce replied, “Sally”, because she was such a clown and she just loved her to death. The same year she got Sally – 1957, Joyce joined the Irish Terrier Club of New York (ITCNY) and was one of its eight original members. For many years, Joyce’s love and knowledge of the Irish Terriers was one of her greatest gifts to countless persons.

Joyce is survived by her great niece Heather Hena, her great nephew Sean Loughrey, and many dear friends.    

In lieu of flowers, those planning an expression of sympathy in Joyce’s name are asked to consider Morris Animal Foundation, 720 S. Colorado Blvd., Ste 174A, Denver, CO 80246, or Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, 1275 York Ave., New York, NY 10065.