Joyce M. Keller | 1953 - 2024
Obituaries-Pierre / Posted Mar 21, 2024 | 2:51 PM / 307 views
PIERRE, SD – Joyce Marie Schrock was born in Denver, Colorado, to Jewel and Evelyn (Wilkerson) Schrock on September 12, 1953. She moved with her family to Pierre, SD, 12 years later and attended school in Stanley County. During that time, and for some time thereafter, she worked for Ed Duffy at Duffy’s Café.
Joyce married Terry Keller on September 2, 1972, in Pierre, and they would go on to have two children, Misty and Shaun. From then on, she kept busy attending dance recitals, baseball games, tennis matches, and school functions at St. Joseph School and T. F. Riggs High School. She dreamed for her children to attend college and pursue their careers. She was proud of them for both obtaining advanced teaching degrees in elementary and special education.
Joyce’s working career primarily included retail positions in the Pierre area. She managed the Hallmark store and Peanut Shack in the Pierre mall. She was on the Dakotamart team for several years and finished her career at Walgreens. Her social nature was her greatest strength. She loved engaging with customers and remembering what products her different customers liked. She enjoyed arranging store displays and participating in charity events on behalf of stores where she worked.
SS. Peter and Paul Catholic Church and St. Joseph School were very important to Joyce. She taught CCD at St. Joseph’s with Sister Jeremy Sutter for 34 years to prepare children for the sacrament of Communion. These two ladies also administered Communion to shut-ins and others for decades. She was also an active member of the Catholic Daughters.
In 2018, illness beset Joyce, and she needed the assistance of assisted living. In 2020, she transitioned into long-term care. She died peacefully March 11, 2024.
Grateful to have shared her life are her husband, Terry; daughter Misty (Mark) Skinner, Sergeant Bluff, IA; son Shaun (Brittney) Keller, Summerset, SD; brother Rex (Lisa) Schrock, Sturgis, SD; grandchildren, Morgan (Garrit) Shanle, Kennedy Skinner, Ella Skinner, Benjamin Skinner, all of Sergeant Bluff, IA; Kaydence Whartman, Summerset, SD; and many nieces, nephews, and in-laws. Preceding her in death were her parents Jewel and Evelyn Schrock, sisters Judy Hardy, Tonja Bauernfeind, Sonya Meyer, Nancy Schrect, and brother Joe Schrock.
In lieu of flowers, please support the hospice programs in Pierre.