Joyce A Wotruba-Polson

Joyce Wotruba-Polson, 81, of Plover, passed away on Thursday, August 11 at the Milestone Memory Care Home in Minocqua, Wisconsin with her children by her side. Joyce was born on November 9, 1940 in Superior, Wisconsin, the daughter of Gary and Dorothea (nee Panzenhagen) Tostrud.

Music was always a central part of Joyce’s life. In high school, she not only played the trombone in the pep band but also won a cello/piano scholarship to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She graduated from there with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music, and, in 1965, moved to Stevens Point to teach elementary music. Joyce then joined the Stevens Point Symphony to play the cello. At the first rehearsal, she met a red-haired oboe player named Edward Wotruba Jr. The two were married five years later and together, raised two children, Frederick (Fritz) and Wendy, in their modern home on the Wisconsin River where she lived for 45 years. Ed passed away in 1992 and Joyce married Francis Polson of Wisconsin Rapids in 1999.

Joyce continued to share her love of music throughout her life as an orchestra teacher for the Stevens Point Area Public School District, teaching at many of the grade schools in the area as well as the orchestra teacher at SPASH. Along with her full-time teaching career, she also continued as a cellist in the Central Wisconsin Symphony Orchestra. She also worked with the American Suzuki Institute at UW-SP. Joyce was an active member of the Stevens Point community. Joyce enjoyed bridge and book clubs, as well as being a member of the Sons of Norway. She was a charter and active member of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Plover from its initial days meeting on Sundays in the local gym. She was always up for an adventure and traveled often. Friends and family always looked forward to receiving a call from Joyce on their birthdays when she’d play a rousing rendition of Happy Birthday especially for them on her grand piano.

Joyce was preceded in death by her parents Gary and Dorothea, and her first husband Edward. She is survived by her two children Fritz (Karla) Wotruba and Wendy (James) Guscette. Her four grandchildren, Trevor and Kirsten Wotruba and Sophia and Charlotte Guscette. Her second husband Francis Polson, and by her two sisters, Gail Stream and Kathleen (Clemet) Imhoff.

A memorial service for Joyce will be held on Sunday, November 20 at 1:00 p.m. at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Plover, Wisconsin, with a visitation after the service. The Committal Service will be private. In lieu of flowers, a memorial has been established with the Central Wisconsin Symphony Orchestra and can be sent to CWSO P.O. Box 65, Stevens Point, Wisconsin 54481.

Online condolences may be shared at nimsgernfuneral.com

NIMSGERN FUNERAL & CREMATION SERVICES OF WOODRUFF, WI IS SERVING THE FAMILY.