Feb. 28, 1949-July 25
Joy Lee Allen (nee Lee, Hee Sook) born in Suwon, South Korea, on Feb. 28, 1949. She was orphaned due to the Korean War and spent her early years at her grandmother’s orphanage with her brother, Johan.
At the age of 16, she was adopted by Chaplain John H DuVal and moved to the U.S. to join his wife, Lorraine DuVal, and two daughters. For the next few years, she worked hard on learning English and assimilating into American culture. She met Maurice Allen at a roller-skating rink in Williamsburg, Va. Despite their lack of skating skills and a language barrier, a romance flourished. They were married on March 7, 1969, by Chaplain DuVal. This was the beginning of their life adventure together traveling the globe and building their family. They were blessed with two children: Richard and Michelle.
Joy was never one to sit around and be idle. She had many interests, but her true passions were cooking, needlepointing and tennis. When she wasn’t busy caring for her family, she was generously offering her time volunteering. Propelled by her love for helping others and a desire for further education, Joy pursued a nursing degree later in life. In 1991, she proudly received her RN degree. Her nursing career was short, though, as she found the lifestyle of a new nurse did not give her adequate time to care for her family.
They moved to Pagosa Springs, Colo., in April of 2000 upon Maurice’s retirement. She enjoyed the beauty and people that Colorado offered. Here, she continued to pursue her passion for tennis and became more involved in the Catholic church at Immaculate Heart of Mary. She decided to become a Catholic and Gloria Adams and several others in the RCIA program helped her through the process. She was baptized and confirmed by Father John Bowe on April 19, 2003. As her dementia progressed, Maurice and Joy received a lot of support from friends, most notably from Fran and John O’Brien. Maurice will be forever grateful to them for making the journey a bit less painful.
Joy passed peacefully on July 25, surrounded by family.
A rosary will be held at the Pope John Paul II Catholic Church in Pagosa Springs on Saturday, Oct. 8, at 9 a.m., eulogy at 9:30 a.m. and Mass at 10 a.m., with interment and reception immediately following.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to JPII to help with mortgage debt.
Joy, we will always love you.
