Joyce E. Ripley

Joyce Elizabeth More Ripley was born July 19, 1921, in Pilot Grove Township, Minnesota, the daughter of George H. and Alice (Lowery) More. She attended country school through the 8th-grade and graduated from Elmore High School in 1939. She was confirmed at the Elmore Methodist Church. After graduation she ran a dress shop in Elmore with her sister, Jean, for a short time and also worked in the Winnebago area as a mother''s helper. She was active in the Rural Youth, where she met her husband of 63 years, Richard F. Ripley. On February 8, 1942, they were married on the More family farm. The couple farmed near Winnebago before moving to Elmore in 1944, where they operated a dairy farm and raised four children. Joyce was a Sunday school teacher (grade 1) at the United Methodist Church for several years and was active in her church circle and United Methodist Women.On Wednesday, December 26, 2007, Joyce passed away at Parker Oaks in Winnebago, Minnesota, at the age of 86. She is survived by sons, Steven (Janice) Ripley of Blue Earth, Roger (Gail) Ripley of Briggsville, WI, and Verlyn (Brenda) Ripley of Blue Earth; a daughter, Darla (Roger) Gilbertson of Minnetonka; 12 grandchildren; 27 great-grandchildren; a sister-in-law, Elizabeth Ripley (Bob) Lawrence; a brother-in-law, Willard Madetzke. She was preceded in death by her husband; her parents; her siblings, Bonna Rhoda, Ross More, Jean Madetzke and Hazel Cooan.