Richard Leon Joy

December 1, 2018

Richard Leon Joy, 75, of Bainbridge, Ga., passed away Saturday, December 1, 2018.

The memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, December 5, 2018, at Ivey Funeral Home Chapel.

The family will receive friends immediately following the service. Online visitors may sign the guest register at www.iveyfuneral.com.. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Shriners Hospitals for Children, 2900 Rocky Point Drive, Tampa, FL 33607.

Richard Leon Joy was born May 8, 1943, in Mountain Grove, Missouri, the son of Leon and Winifred Tooley Joy. He spent his early years in Springfield, and upon graduating from high school he proudly served his country for six years in the United States Marine Corps. He moved to Tampa in 1966. Richard graduated from the University of South Florida and worked in the Tampa area retiring twice, from Tampa Police Department and the West Palm Beach Public Defender’s Office. Richard and Jackie moved to Bainbridge 13 years ago and he became an active member of the Orion Lodge #8 F & AM.

With a last name like JOY, you could say Richard was destined for clowning. He brought laughter and a special sparkle to children’s eyes. Family was the source of much happiness (and material for his clowning). Richard’s curious nature led him down a path of investigations from the Tampa PD, Florida Parole Commission, Public Defender’s Office in Tampa and West Palm Beach. He was an avid golfer who loved to share tales from the green.

Survivors include his wife of 50 years, Jackie Joy; his children, Timothy Joy of Tampa, Jessica Merkison and her husband, David, of Clinton, N.C, and Richard Joy II and his wife, Nanabah, of Albuquerque, New Mexico; and his granddaughter, Jacquelyn. Richard was preceded in death by his parents.