Barbara Joyce Hill

Barbara "Joyce" (Walser) Hill passed away peacefully in her home with her children by her side on November 8, 2023. She was 93 years old.

Joyce Walser was born to Loris and Tony Walser at home on the farm in Viola, Idaho on December 5, 1929. She grew up on the ranch with her brother Bud. Young Joyce enjoyed many adventures on the back of a horse, cruising with her grandmother in their first Studebaker, picking huckleberries for fall canning, and exploring her love of singing-- often serenading the cattle with a pitchfork for a microphone.

She attended school in Palouse where she solidified her love of singing and knew her future path would involve music, and more specifically, opera performance. In 1951 she graduated from the University of Idaho with a Bachelor's degree in Music Education. She loved being part of the "Vandaleers" and "Madrigal Singers" performing for many events and settings. A recent memory she shared was coming back from an event in Boise and stopping at a cafe on the way home. The entire group broke out in singing to the surprise of all the patrons there, everyone smiling.

Her first job was in Kellogg Idaho as a music teacher in a one room schoolhouse. During her teaching stint she became a Navy bride to Arthur James Stott of Palouse, in 1952. She was married for just a short time before Arthur was tragically taken in a recognizant mission while flying for the Navy in Guam.

It was a short time later that Joyce found the truth in Jesus. She embraced it and made the choice to have Jesus be her guide and anchor; a commitment she kept true to all her life. She knew joy and contentment in her days whether in sunshine or storms.

In 1955, Joyce married Jake J. Hill, his devoted wife for 64 years. She was his dedicated co-pilot in everything he pursued, from carpentry to farming. Together they had six children. She was a nurturing mother to her children (and a mother to many more), a grandmother who was always there for her grandchildren, a friend to so many and a natural comedian when life needed some humor.

It was amazing how she could make a pot of soup stretch to fit any crowd; she was an expert in disguising many leftovers into a hash with cheese on top. She baked homemade bread weekly, passing down the art to her daughters and granddaughters. She taught how to properly make a bed, how to sew, how to clean and organize, how to plant a garden and how to weed it. But above all, she taught by example how to be honorable, kind, loyal, humble, content, hospitable and accompanied by grace.

Joyce is survived by her six children, Gary (Kim) Hill, Theresa Gooch, Damon Hill (Mimi), Mindy (Gregg) Vance, Bonnie Sampson and Jake Hill, Jr. Grandchildren numbered at twenty-one, and great grandchildren at eighteen.

Joyce was preceded in death by her husband of 64 years, Jake J. Hill, her first husband Arthur Stott, her parents, Tony and Loris Walser, and her brother, Bud (& Jeanette) Walser.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Barbara Joyce Hill, please visit our floral store.