Renee G. Joyce

I will see you again with the eye of my heart —Lakota saying Renee G Joyce (Previously Known As Ina J Hecker, née Shapiro) passed on August 31, 2021 from complications of pancreatic cancer. She was 67 years old. Renee was born in Brooklyn and grew up in North Jersey. After graduating from Lafayette College, where she majored in Anthropology/Sociology, she attended Wesleyan University, receiving her Master's Degree in Cultural Anthropology. Miss Joyce spent her professional career as an editor, researcher, and grant writer. She worked as a manuscript editor for several NYC publishing houses, copyediting both popular and mass-market books. She went on to edit medical pieces, including books, academic journal articles, continuing medical education materials, and pharmaceutical publications. She served as Managing Editor of Pfizer Labs for several years. Miss Joyce also worked as a medical researcher and a clinical trials coordinator. Miss Joyce resided in Manhattan and then, Brooklyn, after completing her academic degrees. She went on to live in Louisiana for many years. She was a member of a forensic psychiatry team at LSU Medical School, New Orleans, which created a program to revamp medical and psychological services for children serving time in maximum security prisons in Louisiana. The program became a basis for national models. Renee returned to the Northeast in 2013, where she resided in Newtown Square, PA. She retired in 2015. Miss Joyce was a true advocate for shelter animals. She was known for her love of dogs. She volunteered for several SPCAs and humane societies in both Louisiana and Pennsylvania. She also served as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) while residing in St. Tammany Parish, LA, and as a literacy teacher for adults. Renee G. Joyce is survived by her brother, Stanley Genser, his wife, Charla Gardner, their children, and several cousins, along with a multitude of wonderful friends.