Joyce Mulder, age 86, of Luverne, Minnesota, died on Thursday, March 17, 2022, at Sanford Hospice Cottage in Luverne.
Visitation will be held Sunday, March 27, from 4:00-7:00 p.m. at Hartquist Funeral Home – Luverne Chapel. Funeral service will be held Monday, March 28, at 10:30 a.m. at the United Methodist Church in Luverne with burial to follow at Maplewood Cemetery. To sign an online registry and view a life history, please visit www.hartquistfuneral.com.
Joyce Mulder was born July 24, 1935 in Adrian, Minnesota, to Ben and Tina (Tjepkes) Rust. She attended elementary school at Magnolia public school and transferred in eighth grade to Adrian Public School. She graduated from Adrian High School in 1952 at the age of seventeen. After graduation, Joyce moved to Oklahoma where she met and married her first husband, Lee Jepson. The couple was married in 1959 and moved to Connecticut where they were blessed with their daughter, Cindy. In 1968, after Lee’s untimely death, Joyce and Cindy moved back home to be closer to family.
On a Sunday morning after a church service at the United Methodist Church in Luverne, Joyce Rust Jepson and her daughter met a widower farmer/auctioneer by the name of Duane Mulder and his nine-year-old daughter. They immediately recognized each other as grade schoolmates. After a short conversation, Duane suggested that they should go to Sioux Falls for a noon meal. After the noon meal they decided to go to the zoo with their two girls. It did not take long for a relationship to develop. Both knew they wanted a family for their girls and themselves. They were married on October 17, 1975, and never looked back, concentrating on raising their girls and running the farm and auction business. They were an inseparable couple, generally if you saw one, you would see the other. Over the years, Joyce was always beside her auctioneer husband clerking auctions be it 95 degrees or subzero temperatures. Over the 40 plus years she clerked thousands of auctions and settled them out as well. She took the required real estate education, and became a real estate salesperson in Duane’s real estate firm. She sold numerous homes and acreages to many satisfied customers. Joyce was never a person to complain or say a bad word about anyone. She kept a strong faith, taught Sunday school, and was active in the church activities. Duane and Joyce were Sunday School Counselors for a number of years. Throughout the years they never hired a baby sitter. Evenings and weekends were family time with their girls. They might go to town in the evening for a root beer float, go fishing after chores, play a game of pinochle, or go camping and fishing with their girls on weekends. Joyce loved the holidays and planned far in advance for Christmas. She hosted the Auction Company Christmas party for years. Joyce was a past president of the Minnesota State Auctioneers Auxiliary and past president of the Luverne Eagles Club Auxiliary. During the last several years, Duane kept her at home and was her caregiver as a lung disease ravaged her body. While at the Sanford Hospice Cottage in Luverne, Joyce went to be with her Lord on March 17, 2022, surrounded by her loving family.
Joyce is survived by her husband, Duane; daughters, Cindy (Dale) Reverts, and Lori (Jim) Von Holtum; grandchildren, Micheal (Christine) Reverts, Amanda (Adam) Breheny, Matthew (Stephanie) Reverts, J.J. (Jacob) (Amy) Von Holtum, and Adam Von Holtum; great grandchildren, Tanner Reverts, Olivia Reverts, Dominic Breheny, Bailey Breheny, Hannah Breheny, Rhyan Von Holtum, Dax Von Holtum, and Tate Von Holtum; brother Melvin (Dorothy) Rust; as well as many nieces, nephews, and close friends.
Joyce was preceded in death by her first husband, Lee Jepson; parents Ben and Tina Rust; sister Dolores Dreesen; and brother Marvin Rust.
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