Joyce Roth Skabelund

Joyce Roth Skabelund
Born 9 October 1938 in Providence, Utah
Died 10 January 2023 in Provo, Utah

Those hands were so good at holding
Cracked, parched, rough hands
Though soft
But not because of the bag balm, Vaseline, or plethora of lotions
Made worn by holding
Canning rings, clothes pins, lye, Spic and Span, weeds and grass
Grass and weeds
Worn by kneading, rolling, threading, folding
Holding worries, anxiety, until the load overflowed, overwhelmed
Incapacitated
And the bed held her
Held her, sometimes for days, weeks, months
But resilient, she would hold again
Those hands held love
Babies, books, grapefruit, but especially hands
Hand squeezes, once, twice, the “don’t leave me” squeeze
Her hands held even when her mind could no longer
She held us tenderly and taught us how to hold so that we could hold
And we hold her.

Holding her here: Children, Grant Paul (Shari Clark), Todd R. (Susanne Heller), Shawn R. (Alexandra Carpino), Lee R. (Mihoko Tatsumi), Jeremy (Maki Yamazaki), Aaron Herald (Seiko Todate), Rebecca (Becky) Jeane (Teddy Hunt), Heather Jo (Andrew Jenkins), Sierra Lyn (Joseph Abel); 22 grandchildren; 21 great grandchildren and five siblings, Patricia (Pat) Cecil, James Roth, Dale Roth, Ann Whitlock, and Gordon Roth.

Holding her there: husband, Paul Hancey (married 13 September 1957 in Logan, Utah); parents, Afton Rigby and Albert Fredrick Roth; grandson, Alexander Ryan Skabelund; and many other family and friends.

We give a huge thanks to caretakers Lainey Gardner, Terri Toomey, Paola Lara, Jackie Bautista, and to all who loved and supported Joyce during her life.

Family and friends are welcome to visit with Joyce and Paul’s children from 9:30 to 10:30 am on Saturday, 4 March 2023, at 480 North 100 West, Hyde Park Utah. We will celebrate Joyce’s life at 11:00 am at that location that day. If you are unable to attend, consider joining us at THIS LINK (meeting ID: 951 1084 8095). Following the celebration, Joyce’s body will be interred at the Hyde Park Cemetery. After the burial, each of you is invited to share food and friendship at a catered meal at the funeral location.

Poem written by Sierra Lyn Skabelund Abel. In lieu of flowers or other gifts, we invite you to share with the Provo City Library at Academy Square (call the library at 801.852.6679 to donate with a credit card or acquire additional information) or another organization that blesses people’s lives.