Beatrice Joyce Hensley, known to all as Joyce, 87, passed away on Mother’s Day, May 14, 2023, surrounded by her loving family. 

Joyce was the Co-Founder of Hensley Fabricating & Equipment Co. in Tippecanoe, Indiana. 

She was born to Edwin and Pearl (Edwards) Hall of Tippecanoe in 1936.  Joyce met Paul Hensley in 1955 and were married soon after and remained in their loving and committed marriage for 58 years.  She and Paul had four children: Gregg and Robin (Harley) Hensley of Tippecanoe, Pamela and Calvin Pennington of Montpelier, Ohio, Paula and Dale Poisel of Tippecanoe and Susan Hensley of Bourbon.  She was preceded in death by her husband, her sister Delia and her parents. 

Joyce was the loving grandma of 12 grandchildren and 26 great-grandchildren. 

Paul and Joyce loved to travel.  Together, they travelled across the United States and parts of Canada.  She and her two sisters, Nora Mae (McMillan) and Delia (Keene), also loved to travel together.  They would often travel together in their motorhome as well as taking cruises to various parts of the world and always enjoyed each other’s company.

Joyce was a wonderful cook and always made sure that a hot and delicious dinner was always on the table for Paul and the children and grandchildren.  She made the best pies including her world-famous Apple Pie.  When asked what her recipe was, she said she didn’t have one and you just put in “a little of this and a little of that.” 

Every year in the fall, the entire family would go family camping at Tippecanoe State Park.  It was always so much fun and something that the entire family looked forward to every year.  She also loved her dogs, especially her dachshunds.  In the last few years, her dog was a rescue, a Chihuahua named Dolly Rebecca which never left her side in the last few weeks prior to her passing. 

Paul and Joyce started Hensley Fabricating & Equipment Co. in 1962.  During their first 2 years, they ran the company out of the former blacksmith shop of Ed Hall, Joyce’s father.  They designed and manufactured feed milling and grain handling equipment and installations and sold them around the Midwest.  They transition to building bulk feed bodies and trailers in the late 1980’s.    The feed trucks and trailers were a huge success, and now are sold all across North and South America and various parts of the world.

Paul and Joyce attended The Church of Jesus Christ of Argos since the early 1970’s.  Together they loved the Lord and gave Him glory and honor for all the blessings that he bestowed on them in their personal and business affairs.  Joyce was very adamant in supporting causes that protected the rights of the unborn and the fight against abortion, including the Right to Life and other Pro-life organizations.

The family would like to send a special thanks to the Hospice Nurses and Home Healthcare aides, Mel, Laura and Romona, for taking such good, loving care of our beloved Mother and Grandmother these last few months.  She will be greatly missed by her friends and family.

Friends may visit with the family on Thursday May 18, from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. at the Church of Jesus Christ, 15676 Michigan Rd., Argos, Indiana.

Funeral Services will follow at 12:00 p.m. at the church with Travis Hensley. Burial will follow at the Tippecanoe Cemetery, Tippecanoe, Indiana.

Memorial Contributions may be made to: Center for Hospice Care; 112 S. Center St. C, Plymouth, Indiana 46563   

Arrangements have been entrusted with the Earl-Grossman Funeral Home, Argos, Indiana