L. Joyce Croker

1954 - 2016

March 17, 1954 - November 7, 2016 L. Joyce Croker, a former Los Angeles Times staff member who enjoyed a long career as a graphic designer and art director, died Nov. 7 in Los Angeles after a nearly six-year-long battle with lung cancer. She was 62. During her illness, Croker created a blog, "Sprinting Towards 60," that detailed her treatments and personal reactions. The blog was widely read and inspired many cancer patients. One of her posts - "My Turn: Lung cancer's reality sharpens focus on her life's journey" - was published as a column in the Los Angeles Times in 2011. Croker's career included posts as an assistant art director at WLVI-TV in the Boston area, electronic art services manager at The Shalek Agency, assistant systems editor at the Los Angeles Times and creative director at UCLA Extension, from which she retired in 2014. She taught design, illustration and animation for 21 years at UCLA Extension. In addition, she owned Flying Fish Productions, a freelance design company. An avid photographer, Croker belonged to the National Association of Photoshop Professionals and the Association for Computing Machinery. Born March 17, 1954 in Pomona, California, Croker moved with her family to Los Altos Hills, California, where she graduated from high school. She received a degree from ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena and took postgraduate courses at the University of California, Los Angeles. In 2008 when California first legalized same-sex marriage, she married Joan Ellingham, her partner of 25 years. They were among the married couples featured on the cover of The Advocate, an LGBT magazine. Croker is survived by her wife Joan; her sister, Kathleen Croker; her aunts, Karen DeCoursey and Joyce Helper; and two nieces, as well as numerous friends. Viewing will be held from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., Friday at Forest Lawn Glendale, 1712 S. Glendale Ave., Glendale. Services will be held at noon, Saturday, at Cristo Rey Church, 4343 Perlita Ave., Los Angeles, followed by ennichment at Forest Lawn Glendale. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Cristo Rey Church.