Joyce Joan DeBower, 93, of Columbus, Nebraska, died Saturday, December 14, 2024, at Emerald Care and Rehab of Columbus.

The funeral service will be held on Friday, December 20 at 2:00 PM, at St. Luke's United Church of Christ, with Rev. Adam Lassen officiating.  Private family interment will be held in Schuyler Cemetery, Schuyler, Nebraska, prior to the funeral service.  Visitation will be on Thursday from 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM at Gass Haney Funeral Home.  There will be a luncheon in the church fellowship hall immediately after the service in the church on Friday.  Memorials may be directed to those of the donor's choice.

Joyce Joan DeBower was born February 12, 1931, in Missouri Valley, Iowa to Hugh and Christie (Stevens) Fitch.  She graduated from Missouri Valley High School in 1949 and attended Colorado Women's College for one year.  In 1976 she moved to Columbus and worked at Far Better Feeds in Duncan for 13 years.  During that time, she met Rolland DeBower and the two were married on January 24, 1981.  They enjoyed camping and attending Nebraska Football games.  She also enjoyed bowling, going to Disney World, doing jigsaw puzzles, and visiting with all her friends at Crown Villa.  But her special joy was spending time with her family, grandchildren, and great and great-great grandchildren.  She was a member of St. Luke's United Church of Christ.

Joyce is survived by:
Son – Mike (Stephanie) Bessire of Ada, OK
Grandchildren – Callie (Darrell) Monroe, Nicholas Bessire, Bethany (Mark) Walling, Paula (Chris) Vanderveer
Daughter – Sheryl Heath of Minden, NE
Grandchildren – Paul (Mindy) Heath and Kyle (Jessica) Heath
Son – Todd (Faith) Bessire of Missouri Valley, IA
Grandchildren – Kelly (Jaime) Evans, Joey Cipolla, and Justice Cipolla
Daughter – Stacey (Lee) Sanders of Omaha, NE
Grandchildren – Joshua Hambright and Jeremy (Natalie) Hambright
Son – Richard (Mary) DeBower of Schuyler, NE
Grandchildren – Amanda (Clay) Jedlicka, Sarah Woehl, Megan (Josh) Slonecker, Nicholas DeBower and Brandon DeBower
Daughter – Rolla Jean DeBower of Norfolk, NE
Grandchildren – Emily (Brady) Hoefer and Rachael (Branson) Hoefer
Son – Ross (Pamela) DeBower of Columbus, NE
Grandchildren – Colton (Caitlin) DeBower, Logan (Tyler) Evans, Cabe DeBower, and Regan DeBower
Many Great and Great-Great Grandchildren

Joyce was preceded in death by:
Parents – Hugh and Christie Fitch
Husband – Rolland DeBower
Two Grandchildren
Brother – Conrod Fitch
Sister – LaVonne Sharp