Joyce Mayhawk

Joyce Mayhawk transitioned peacefully on May 9,2024, while at Phelps Memorial Hospital in Sleepy Hollow, New York. She was the spry age of 89.
Born in Columbus, Ohio on August 31, 1934, to James "Buddy" Davis and Pauline Hauser Davis, her family moved to Detroit, Michigan, within a year, where Joyce
remained until moving to New York in 1961.
Joyce was raised in Detroit by her mother and stepfather, Charles Moss, who was a pharmacist. She
was extremely intelligent and talented and excelled in art, dancing, golf and bridge. Educated in the Detroit public schools, she proudly graduated from Cass
Technical High School in 1952. Cass Tech, a highly competitive school where students were accepted based on academic merit, was known as "an institution
virtually unparalleled in American secondary education and offered over twenty-three technical curricula during that time." Cass Tech, like Detroit,
was very cosmopolitan, hosting students of all cultures and ethnicities. It was this melting pot of academia and individuals that shaped Joyce and her view of the
world. After high school, she attended Wayne State University, also in Detroit.
On July 26, 1957, Joyce married Robert L. Mayhawk. To this union two daughters were born, Joi and Lia.
After college, Joyce worked for the Burroughs Corporation, a company that created computer systems. In late 1960, Joyce and her family moved to
midtown Manhattan where they lived until she returned home to Detroit to prepare for the birth of her second daughter. In 1964, together with her husband
and two young children, Joyce returned to New York and settled in Greenburgh, where she began a career at Eastern Airlines.
Always a creative force, Joyce left the airlines to become a stay-at-home mother, where she perfected her artistic talents. She was a gifted artist,
craftswoman and clothing designer, who opened and was featured in many art studios around Westchester and New York City.
Joyce lived a life marked by dedication and devotion to her family. Everything she did was focused on making sure her family, especially her girls, were taken care of.
She worked from home until her daughters began elementary school, and then joined the faculty of Edu Cage an alternative high school in White Plains,
serving 31 schools districts and agencies across Westchester County, when asked by the director. She worked as an English and Home Economics teacher for
18 years. She later worked at Bernard C. Harris Publishing company and then Gannett Newspapers, from where she retired.
Joyce was a loving spirit with a huge heart. She was passionate about helping others and always ready to support. An avid bowler, she loved playing
backgammon, drawing, reading, acting and singing in the church choir. In her later years, she developed a love for vacationing, especially cruising. In November
2023, she fell in love again, when she was given a Cocker Spaniel puppy, whom she named BellaDonna Velour. Affectionately called Bella, she was a loyal
companion to Joyce until her death.
Everyone who knew Joyce would agree that she lived her life out loud and with passion. Her antics were
legendary and those who knew her have their own special stories. Although at times she could be misunderstood or viewed as abrupt, she had great
compassion for others and never missed an opportunity to let them know how she felt about them. Joyce loved her family and had a special unique
relationship with each of them. There was nothing she wanted more than to spend time with them. She loved
being on the go and spending hours shopping, especially in Walmart.
Joyce was a very giving person who touched many people's lives and developed many deep friendships. Over the years, she adopted many young people as
surrogate sons and daughters. She could be counted on for advice regarding any and everything, as well as providing support and comfort to others in need.
Joyce loved the Lord and learned to lean on Him throughout her life, especially dealing with divorce after 27 years of marriage and the sudden death of her first
daughter Joi, in 2019. She was a lifelong Episcopalian, until she witnessed the move of God upon the lives of her daughter, Lia and son-in-law, James. She was
baptized in 1995 as a member of the Little Friendship Free Will Baptist Church in Mount Vernon and then joined Mount Lebanon Baptist Church and Mount
Olivet Baptist Church, respectively.
On three separate occasions, in two different hospitals, over 3 months, doctors proclaimed that she would die within hours or days. On three separate occasions her
God proved them wrong, and she used these opportunities to share the gospel and sovereignty of God, telling them that "I didn't give up the ghost," and
"God said not yet."
Even with the medical care she received, she was attended to daily by her grandson, Remy, which brought her great comfort and joy.
In the week preceding her death, Joyce emphatically stated that she wanted the following placed in her obituary, "I'm the woman who spent her life thinking
she was alone only to find out, at death's door, that I am not." She appreciated every visit and sacrifice, especially from her grandchildren.
Joyce was predeceased by her father, James "Buddy" Davis; stepfather and mother, Charles and Pauline Moss; and daughter, Joi Mayhawk. She leaves her
legacy nationwide through her remaining family: daughter, Lia (James T. Jr.) Council of Peekskill, New York; grandchildren Eric P. "Scotty" McDonald, Robert
E. "Remy" McDonald, Kyle A. Council, Krystal J. Council, Christopher S. Council all of Peekskill, New York and James T. (Stacey) Council, III of Carmel, New
York; Great-grandchildren Brianna Prince of Danbury, Connecticut; Emarie A. Davis, Jayla Council, Zaire A. Davis, James T. Council, IV, all of Peekskill, New York;
Jaydhen Council of Beacon, New York; and Willow Council of Wappingers Falls, New York; Amaya C. McDonald and Jaelyn A. McDonald of Los Angeles,
California, and brother, Ronald J. (Jill) Davis of Oak Park, Michigan, as well as a host of nieces, nephews, and other relatives and friends.
It has been an honor to call her mommy, granny, grams, grandmother, Mother Mayhawk and Joyce. The world is a better place because she was part of it.