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Born in Aurora, North Carolina on April 16, 1935, this lovely lady exemplified grace, love and a beautiful spirit to all who knew her. Joyce passed away peacefully under Hospice care on January 30, 2021 in Charlotte, NC at the age of 85.

The daughter of Sarah Bonner Broome and Walton A. Broome, she and her older brother, George Broome, enjoyed growing up in the small community of Aurora and making life-long friends. Joyce graduated from Aurora High School and attended East Carolina College. She married her childhood sweetheart, Shelton Ward Bowen, in 1954 and they celebrated 46 years of marriage. The couple settled in Kinston, NC where they raised their family. A member of First Baptist Church in Kinston, Joyce was passionate about children and taught first and second grade Sunday school for 25 years. She was also a Cub Scout leader, a member of the Jayceetes and an avid bridge player. Joyce worked at Kinston Bone and Joint Clinic for 32 years.

While empty nesting, Joyce loved spending time with Shelton at Emerald Isle Beach. Joyce was preceded in death by Shelton in 2000, and she later relocated to Greenville, NC to be near family where she became an active member of St. James Methodist Church. In 2018, Joyce relocated to Matthews Glen, formerly Plantation Estates, in Charlotte to be near family. Joyce made many wonderful friends who richly blessed her life in all of these communities.

Joyce’s “crowning joy in life” was her children. In her own words, deceased daughter (d: 1957) Kathryn Anne’s “short time on this earth shaped and molded the lives of the Bowen family and taught them love and beauty do not always come in the form of a perfect body, but in the gifts and blessings that are given by God through adversity.” This gift was shared with her sons and daughters-in-law, Mike and Dean Bowen of Charlotte and Ron and Johna Bowen of Greensboro.

Joyce delighted in her grandchildren, Virginia (Jordan Mitchell), Tory (Ben Pruitt), Matthew Bowen and Hunter Bowen. She was grateful to also delight in her first great-grandchild, Bowen Mitchell. Joyce was so very proud of her children, grandchildren and great-grandchild and she set an example for them with a deep abiding faith in God and the values of honesty, integrity and forgiveness.

A private, graveside service will be held Saturday, February 20, 2021, at Westview Cemetery, Kinston.

In lieu of flowers, Joyce asked for donations to be made to either the NC Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, St. James Methodist Church, Greenville or First Baptist Church, Kinston.

Arrangements are in the care of Kenneth W. Poe Funeral and Cremation Service, 1321 Berkeley Ave., Charlotte, NC 28204, 704 641-7606. Online condolences can be shared at www.kennethpoeservices.com.