Joyce Kaylor

Joyce Kaylor, a homemaker, cosmetologist, and gifted singer, piano/organ player who often played later in life for fellow residents at NHC-Columbia, was born into the Great Depression in 1930 in Nashville, TN as Joyce Taylor (Taylor was her maiden name and her rhyming name was a longstanding family joke). Her father took his life when Joyce was only 5 years old leaving her to care for her younger sisters while her mother went to work to support the family. Joyce was later raised by her mother and step-father until marrying Bob Kaylor in 1949. After losing their first child, Bob, Jr., at 3 days old, Joyce gave birth to sons Clark in 1951 and Steve in 1953. Bob’s work took them to Memphis, TN. Joyce suffered two miscarriages before giving birth to her youngest son Mak in 1964. Bob and Joyce were married for 48 years. In her 60s, Joyce cared for both Bob, who had Alzheimer’s disease, and her very ill mother at the same time in their home until their deaths in 1997. Mak and wife LeAnn moved Joyce back to her hometown Nashville after Bob’s death. At age 75, Joyce wed Harvey Brown and remained married until her death at age 85 in Columbia, TN on November 20th, 2015. Joyce was a lifelong member of the Church of Christ and resided at NHC-Columbia at the time of her passing.

Joyce Kaylor leaves three sons (Clark Kaylor of Tucson, AZ, Steve Kaylor of Memphis, TN and Mak Kaylor of Columbia, TN), five grandchildren, and four great-granddaughters.

The family will receive friends for a vigil of remembrance and celebration on November 22nd beginning at 1 p.m. till 4 p.m. at Williams Funeral Home in Columbia.

On a personal note, my mother, Joyce Kaylor, exemplified love and the truest type of courage; the courage to always express her love boldly regardless of what anyone thought of her. It was not unusual to hear her telling a stranger all about me (embarrassing moments that I’d love to relive now); or to walk into her room at NHC-Columbia and hear her reading the Bible to her husband Harvey each evening; or to hear her “I love you” blessing any number of the nursing staff there and us. That was just naturally who my Mom was. She loved unashamedly. She faced many challenges throughout her life including tragedies and illnesses with the same courageous response: she loved. Mom loved everyone she met without stipulation or critique. Anyone who ever met her would testify to this fact. “Hi, Honey” was her sweet greeting to the hospital staff who attended to her even with fleeting breath during her last days on earth. When she lacked the strength to speak, she would wave gently. Mom was wonderfully eccentric in ways many of us in this fast paced world can't relate. Unfazed by the constraints of time, since I can remember she would ask the name of the man cleaning her table or hug the new girl who was checking her blood sugar level. An essential virtue my dear mother instilled in my heart is the fact that we are all God's children. No one is better than another to Him and, therefore, they weren’t to her either. My heart is filled with memories of her loving example. It has been a blessing to care for her in her final years on earth; to witness her love for others and for me. She was always my biggest fan. I hope she knows that I was hers, too.

“Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.” I Corinthians 13: 7-8a