Joyce Thomas

Joyce Thomas

1931 ~ 2021

On May 6, 2021 our beautiful mom stepped through the veil of death to meet her loved ones on the other side. She was a wonderful mother, grandmother, great grandmother and now great, great grandmother. She will be missed so much!

Joyce was born Joyce Marilyn Hughlett on August 12, 1931 in Waukesha, WI.  She lived in Wisconsin until age 9 when her family left in the winter and travelled by car to California, where they made a new home in San Fernando Valley, CA.  Mom says it was kind of like when the Wizard of Oz changes from black and white to color.  The difference in waking up in warm sunny California was a dramatic difference from the stark winter of Wisconsin.

Eventually the family moved to North Hollywood.  In 1947 the family moved to Hamilton MT which turned out to be a life changing move for Joyce.  She tells the story of pulling into the driveway of the house the family rented, which was part of a larger ranch with a bigger house on the property next door.  She said she knew there was an 18 year old boy who lived next door.  She had an impression that she would marry that boy.  She was 16 at the time.  Well, her impression came true.  They married in June of 1949.  Her family moved to Montana long enough for Bill and Joyce to meet, marry, and have their first child.  Then her family moved back to California.

Bill Thomas was a Mormon.  Joyce had grown up going to the Lutheran Church.  Eventually she joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- day Saints.  The family was later sealed together in the Salt Lake LDS Temple.

Joyce’s marriage to Bill started a life of adventure for her.  Bill was originally from Jackson WY.  They lived briefly in Washington State, and California, but eventually moved back to Bill’s beloved Jackson.  After a few years it became apparent that making a living was difficult in Jackson.  That is when they determined to have Bill go back to school at BYU in Provo, UT.  While in Provo, Joyce worked as an executive secretary for the hospital administrator and an Administrative Assistant for the Dean of the College of Business at BYU. They spent several happy years in Provo which turned out to be a great place to raise their three children.

Another life changing decision was about to be made.  Bill still longed for his mountain home in Jackson.  His family had settled Wilson, WY at the foot of Teton Pass.  His great grandfather Elijah Nicholas Wilson had brought the first covered wagons over Teton Pass in 1889.  His Grandfather homesteaded a section of land in Jackson, WY at the mouth of Cache Creek Canyon just a few miles from town. Bill spent many happy summers with his grandfather Enoch Ferrin on the ranch in Jackson while he was growing up.  It was there that he felt most at home.

In the summer of 1972 a plan started to form to start an outfitting business for tourists in Jackson.  The name would be Bar T Five Outfitters.  T for Thomas and 5 for the 5 members of the Bill and Joyce Thomas family.  Eventually they bought most of the old homestead in Jackson and started a four day three night Covered Wagon Train tour on an old reclamation road just south of Yellowstone National Park.  They also had a four day and a six day horseback pack trip.  A few years later they started a nightly Covered Wagon Cookout and Wild West show in Cache Creek Canyon in Jackson.  The four day covered wagon trip and the nightly cookout in Jackson still are in operation today in Jackson.

Sadly, Joyce lost her companion, and love of her life on Christmas Day in 1994 as a result of a heart attack.  Just 20 months later she lost her youngest son from heart failure.  It was a very rough time for her.  But consistent with her good grace she was able weather the storm.  She sold the business to her oldest son and moved to Layton, UT to be near her daughter.

During her years at Bar T Five she marketed the business and was featured on the cover of Country Woman magazine and had feature articles in such publications as Family Circle magazine, LA times, Cosmopolitan magazine and many other newspapers and magazines.  The business was also featured in a half hour TV special with Dennis Weaver who had starred in the TV series Gunsmoke.  She was also named Business Woman of the Year in Jackson.

During retirement Joyce has lived 21 years in Layton, with a five year break when she lived in Mesquite, NV.  While retired she served three consecutive three year missions at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building and Temple Square in Salt Lake City.  She was able to travel, to India, Thailand, Nepal where she rode an elephant and viewed the Himalayas from a small plane.  She was able to travel to Italy, Norway, Hawaii and several other locations in the US.  She has had a wonderful and blessed life.

In addition to all of these roles she helped to raise her grandchildren and great grandchildren and has been a loved a revered matriarch for her family.

She is survived by her daughter Sandra Johnson, son, Jim Thomas (Donna). Her grandchildren; Jennifer Krumland (Paul), Ariane McCabe (Eric), James Thomas (Elma), Josh Thomas, Scott Thomas, Nick Thomas (Megan), and Shalynn Allsup. She has 19 great-grandchildren and two great-great- grandchildren.

Funeral services will be held Wednesday, May 12, 2021 at 2:00 p.m. at Lindquist’s Layton Mortuary, 1867 No. Fairfield Rd., Layton, Utah.  Friends may visit with family Wednesday from 12:00 to 1:30 p.m. at the mortuary.  Interment will be held Saturday, May 15, 2021 at 2 p.m. at the Aspen Hill Cemetery in Jackson, Wyoming.

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